Mark Eddins is owner and general manager of Friendly Chevrolet, which claims on its website that’s it has been the No. 1 volume Chevy dealer in Dallas since 1956.

How Eddins and his team work toward maintaining that stature comes through methods that might be contrarian to some retailers. Not only does Friendly Chevrolet have a significant subprime customer base, Eddins wants as much in-person interaction as possible both with vehicle buyers and the companies financing those deliveries.

“I started when I was 15. I like to think I know a little bit about the business,” Eddins said when introducing himself as part of panel discussion at the Non-Prime Auto Financing Conference, which was hosted by the National Automotive Finance Association earlier this month in Plano, Texas.

“I’ve always been in favor of the relationship between the auto dealer and the lenders being an equal relationship and partnership. They both have to be profitable in order for the relationship to survive and grow,” he continued.

When it comes to non-prime and subprime customers, Eddins estimated those individuals represent about 20% of his sales.

“When it comes to marginal paper, sub-600 Beacon customers, we believe the relationship is even more important than when we’re working with the guy with an 800 Beacon and could pay cash but we try to talk him into financing,” Eddins said. “We think that the more marginal the credit of the customer is, the more we have to build rapport and find out more about him. That’s not any different than what we have to do with lenders that have to support us to be able to finance those types of customers.

“We really work hard and try to develop that relationship not only with the customer but with the lenders we use,” he added.

Eddins didn’t state specific company names, but he did mention that his dealership works with about a dozen different financial institutions. He welcomes the field representatives from those finance providers to his store whenever the opportunity arises, asking them to bring portfolio metrics stemming from the contracts that originated at Friendly Chevrolet.

“We like to be very close with the banks we do business with because it’s almost like selling a car. If I can look at that customer and I can talk to that customer, I’ll usually be more successful at whatever we’re doing than if I’m on the phone or online with them. It’s the same with our lenders,” Eddins said.

“Whether it’s an OEM, a bank or some other person we’re doing lending with, to us if they come see us, it’s great. We don’t ever reject that. We don’t ever limit that because we want that relationship because hopefully that means they’ll buy more paper from me. That relationship goes such a long way in smoothing that path of understanding about a particular customer,” he went on to say.

And speaking of those Friendly Chevrolet customers, Eddins wants them in his Dallas showroom as much as possible. While the store website highlights more than 200 new and used vehicles for sale, Eddins is looking to meet the potential buyer in a face-to-face situation rather than through a digital retailing scenario that’s sometimes pushed by other stores.

“I’m an old-school guy. I like to have the customer in front of me. I’m not an advocate of the online selling and all the things that are trying to put a wedge between me and my customers. That’s the way I see it,” Eddins said.

“The less they know about what they’re clicking on while they’re at home trying to do something, the more issues they can get into,” he continued. “A customer who thinks they know what they want many times changes once they get a professional in front of them trying to advise them on what kind of transportation they need. We’re a big advocate in my dealership on trying to get in front of customers. We try to do everything we can to satisfy what their needs are. The more rapport we build, the easier that road becomes.”

That retail and financing road might have more in-person buyers who have soft credit histories, according to Eddins, whose store has been the General Motors Dealer of the Year seven times since 2011.

“I think it’s going to be an even bigger part of our business going forward, especially in the economic climate we’re in at least for the next couple of years. We’re going to have to work hard to maintain the same results we’ve had,” Eddins said.

“I think it’s really vibrant. I think it’s got a great future,” he added.