Jim Pattison Lease Announces the Acquisition of Kelowna Auto Mall Leasing

May 1, 2019 (Vancouver, BC) – Jim Pattison Lease is pleased to announce the acquisition of the Kelowna Auto Mall Leasing portfolio located in Kelowna, British Columbia. Kelowna Auto Mall Leasing has been serving customers since 1989 and has built up a loyal customer base through excellent personal service. The same personal and expert service will continue to be managed by the Kelowna Auto Mall Leasing staff at McCurdy Place in Kelowna, BC for all current and future clients.

Warren Linquist, Owner of Kelowna Auto Mall Leasing Centre:

“I am excited about the new services and tools that we will be able to introduce to our customers. Our number one priority in completing this transaction was ensuring that our current customer base would benefit from this partnership.

Michael Rusch, President of Jim Pattison Lease:

“We are excited about the opportunity to increase our presence in British Columbia with this transaction in Kelowna. We look forward to growing our business with both existing and new customers,”

Jim Pattison Lease is a wholly owned division of Jim Pattison Industries Ltd., Canada’s second largest privately held company. Jim Pattison Lease is Canada’s largest privately owned National Vehicle Leasing and Fleet Management Company. With offices in Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montréal, Dartmouth and now Kelowna, Jim Pattison Lease is truly a coast-to-coast company. Jim Pattison Lease offers personalized service and unique transportation solutions to commercial enterprises and businesses across Canada.

Employee Highlight: Terry Bates

Terry Bates

Senior Account Manager, Burnaby

How long have you been with Jim Pattison Lease?

I’ve been with Jim Pattison Lease for 46 years. I started on July 1, 1972.

What do you do here?

The main part of what I do here is taking care of customers and giving them the best possible service they can get. At Jim Pattison Lease, a customer is always number one. I like to view it as I’m the customer’s unpaid employee.

Another part of my job that I feel is really important is that I deal with the customer from start to finish rather than only leasing the car to the customer and then passing them off to someone else. I think that’s really important so you can build the relationship and that they can voice their concerns to one person.

What’s the most rewarding part of your job?

What I find so rewarding about my job is finding the right car for each customer and seeing them happy and satisfied. Every customer that comes to Jim Pattison Lease has different wants and needs and I like the challenge of finding something that fits what they’re looking for.

Can you share a memory that stands out in all the years?                    

I had been with Jim Pattison Lease for 14 years and was working out of the Vancouver, B.C. office. Management decided to transfer me to the Burnaby location and it was an amazing change. At the Burnaby location, I was given complete autonomy to make my own decisions and started to notice my numbers doubled. At that time, there were only 3 people at the Burnaby office and now there are 40.

What are some of the things you like to do outside of work?

I love anything construction related. Building wood projects are really fun for me. I also really enjoy golfing and water skiing.

What has helped make you successful at your job?

There are two things that have helped me be so successful: treating the customer the way I would want to be treated and making sure I respond to people within the same day.

I remember in 1986, I read a book called One Minute Manager. It said it’s important to treat the customer the way you would like to be treated-it will make a big difference in the way you do business. Ever since reading that book, that’s what I have done and I have seen a great improvement.

It’s also important to me that I maintain good communication with everyone. Whenever I get an email, I make sure I let the other person know that I’ve at least seen it. Even if I don’t know the answer, I like to acknowledge that I got the email and that I’m working on a solution.