FARMS, FORDS & F-150S con't from FRONT PAGE FARMS, FORDS & F-150S continued FARMS, FORDS & F-150S continued
many times over culminating into the best road
trip ever! Join the ride as we meet the Cooper
Ford family, locally owned and operated by
Aaron and Shelley Cooper.
who guide customers to what they are looking
for, whether it is a 4–wheel drive, a 4-door,
sport-utility, or an economical ride to get to
and from work. “You have to offer a good price,
but honestly it comes down to the best service,”
shares Cooper. “People’s time is valuable. The
less time it takes you to find the right car for
the right price—there’s value in this. Payment is
probably the most important factor in buying a
vehicle. Does it fit the budget?”
Friendly and eager to help, the Cooper Ford
team works together to find the perfect fit for
each client. If they don’t have the exact color or
options in stock on any new Ford, then they can
get it within 24-48 hours. At Cooper Ford, trucks
remain the best seller, being centrally located
within Moore County’s farming /military
community. Within the Ford line up, the Ford
F-150 trucks and Super Duty are the #1 seller.
And the favorite colors? “Red, white, and the
black,” smiles Cooper.
With the most requested services being
oil changes and routine maintenance, the
Leading the way early on, Cooper was the
oldest of four children, two boys and two girls.
Although his parents were teachers, childhood
days were shared on the farm as both sets of
grandparents were farmers. Days started at five
in the morning as Cooper helped gather crops
for the farmer’s market each weekend. On the
farm there was a stock tank for fishing, and
Cooper remembers, “A creek ran through the
pond; our swimming pool was the creek! Back
then, we didn’t have cell phones, TV, or video
games, none of that, so we just played outside.
These are my best memories of growing up;
sadly, my children never got to experience this.”
Blessed with four daughters, the Cooper family
travels back to Texas for the holidays where most
of the family still lives. His office gives testament
of his Texas roots, but noting he’s been in North
Carolina for just as long as Texas, Cooper smiles,
“This is home.”
Never really knowing exactly what he wanted
to be when he grew up, Cooper thought the guys
in business suits and ties looked really cool.
Even though he admired the farm work, Cooper
shares, “I wanted to be a business man with a
briefcase and a suit and tie. I didn’t really know
what that meant, but I wanted to be in business,
somehow, some way.”
After graduating from Weatherford High
School, Cooper earned a business degree
in finance from Texas A&M. With hopes of
attending Baylor University for his MBA, a
phone call offered a detour down a new avenue.
When his good friend Harlan Daniel called
and encouraged him to check out the car
business, Cooper tells, “I just kind of fell into it,
honestly.” From those early years of getting into
the industry to now dealership owner, Cooper
returned the favor in a phone call and hired
Daniel who now serves as General Manager at
Cooper Ford.
When an automotive recruiting firm had
an opening in Oklahoma City at a Chevrolet
store, Aaron packed up & moved from Texas
to Oklahoma City to begin his career. With life
in the fast lane, Cooper settled into his new
neighborhood. Excelling in sports from an
early age with football, baseball and basketball,
Cooper continued playing in Oklahoma when
one such fateful game introduced a new mile
marker in the journey. Her name is Shelley, the
love of his life, and Cooper shares, “We lived
in Oklahoma until I was offered a Director of
Finance position at a Ford store in Dallas. We
lived in Dallas for about 3 years and welcomed
our first daughter, Channing.” From Channing
to Savannah, Madison and Bailey, the Coopers
now celebrate 25 years of marriage.
From Chevy to Ford, to retail sales to
automotive consulting which included
recruiting, and strategy planning for automotive
dealerships, Cooper managed sales’ training
and grew relationships in the trade. When
Cooper was offered a general manager position
with Hendricks Automotive Group at the Cary
Auto Mall, he decided to pack everybody up
and move to Cary. “It was an upheaval to leave
Dallas for our family, but we enjoyed Cary, and I
learned quite a bit about the retail side.”
When an offer mapped out a road trip back
to Oklahoma, Cooper started his own consulting
company which focused on recruiting, sales
training and strategy planning for automotive
dealerships. Featuring a small business within a
showroom of huge competitors was tough, but
it was a learning experience offering another
fate encounter. Cooper remembers, “One of my
accounts was the majority owner of Steve Jones
Honda and Steve Jones Chevrolet who offered a
position as general manager and minority owner
of Steve Jones Honda and Steve Jones Chevrolet.
Here we come back to North Carolina, and here
we come to stay!”
As Cooper developed new relationships in the
local automotive groups, one such man named
Tommy Philips of Philips Ford in Carthage stood
out amongst the others. While Cooper was
shifting gears into new destinations, Tommy
was slowing down his ride into retirement.
“If you ever want to sell, then I would love the
opportunity to buy your dealership,” offered
Cooper. About a year later, the conversation
reunited and sealed the deal when Shelley and
Cooper bought the dealership in 2016.
Of the trends that set Cooper Ford apart in the
marketplace, the most important feature starts
local! One of only two locally and family–owned
dealerships with Clark Chevrolet being the other,
Cooper explains the importance. “Having the
owner be able to sit down with our customers,
whether it be for either service or sales, is an
element that other stores can’t provide. Our
customer service is above and beyond because I
don’t have the luxury of another eighteen stores
to manage. If I lose a customer, then I don’t have
another hundred behind him. Every customer
I have is the most important customer. Every
single customer counts. Every. Single. One.”
In valuing each customer, the Cooper
Commitment supplies first and foremost the
best customer service around town. When you
buy a vehicle from Cooper Ford, “then a huge
part of our commitment is the service after
the sale,” tells Cooper. “The most important
thing from me to a customer is when they leave
here because I want them to come back again
and again. Our Cooper Commitment includes
free oil changes, tire rotation and lifetime car
inspections when you buy a car from us.”
Sales and service remain the driving forces
behind Cooper Ford. Cooper debunks the old
stereo–typical car salesman stigma. “Early on
in the car business, consumers didn’t have the
various information outlets such as the Internet,
Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds.com,” informs
Cooper. “From invoices to fair market pricing on
used vehicles, the Internet has really changed
the game as nothing is hidden anymore.”
Cooper defines car salesmen as advisors
Cooper Ford in Carthage
Aaron & Shelley Cooper, Cooper Ford Owners.
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p.26 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. No. 138
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