The Montgomery Chevrolet Story

Isn't it funny how it feels like you can take most any company's mission statement, switch a few words around, and have it apply to any other cookie cutter company?  Well that's not the case with Montgomery Chevrolet.  We're hard workers, we're fighters, we're underdogs.  That's the way its been for 80 years, selling Chevy's to our loyal customer base despite always swimming up stream in a Ford factory town.

We think everything starts with our people, they are the ones that invest their lives in our business because they care and enjoy what they do each day.  In fact, we have several active employees that have been with us for 30 plus years - and we aren't talking about the owners either!  As a customer, you feel different in interacting with people that care.

Montgomery Chevrolet was founded in 1923 by Raymond Montgomery I, only 15 years after the birth of the Ford Model T.  Ray had previously bootstrapped together a small used car operation that sold and serviced the early autos of the day, and was overjoyed to be awarded one of the regions first Chevrolet dealerships.  At this time, Montgomery Chevrolet was located downtown on the 2nd & Liberty block, where the O'Malley's Corner is today.  Ray used to have a policy of rewarding employees with an extra $100 for each year they worked with him as a Christmas bonus - and $100 in those days is $1275 in today's dollars!

In 1955, Ray Montgomery I passed away unexpectedly in his mid 50's, when Ray Montgomery II was just in his mid 20's. General Motors decided Ray Jr. would need a couple more years under his belt before they'd sign off on him running the dealership, so Ray's uncle stepped in to help during this transitional period.  In a couple years, Ray Montgomery II, known today as "Big Ray," was deemed ready, and took over.  If you spend any time with Big Ray, he's quick with countless stories of all his repeat customers & employees through the years.  In the late 70's, as downtown Louisville was slowing down, the decision to move the dealership from downtown to quickly growing Preston Hwy was decided.

In the mid 80's, Ray "Chip" Montgomery III and brother Steve Montgomery were back from college, and began learning the business from the ground up.  By 1985, "Big Ray" decided his boys were ready to take control and stepped aside.  Montgomery Chevrolet adopted the nickname "The Big M on Preston" after this transition, and later, the slogan "Promises Made, Promises Kept."

It was during this time that Montgomery Chevrolet took to playing in the city-wide baseball league.  Despite being a company of 60 employees, the team mounted an impressive run against teams fielded by thousand employee hospitals and local industries before finally coming up short against 3000 employee LG&E.  Its no wonder that other dealers joked that Montgomery Chevrolet had part of our job interview process devoted to prospecting for baseball players to fit into our lineup.

By the late 80's, to take advantage of the growing Elizabethtown and Radcliff areas, Steve Montgomery relocated to open Montgomery Imports (Porsche, Audi, Mazda, Volkswagen, & later Kia), as well as Big M Chevrolet on the Dixie in Radcliff.

If you remember any of the Freedom Hall tractor pulls, Montgomery Chevrolet was a key sponsor, often landing the Monster Trucks like Grave Digger to take residence on the lot as another reason for area customers to drop on by.

Montgomery Chevrolet has also had a long-standing relationship with Louisville Cardinal and UK athletic departments, giving both schools coaches cars to drive as an in-kind donation.  This made for interesting stories over the years, like when Coach Schnellenberger just couldn't resist smoking his pipe in an Impala, or Denny Crum's new-to-driving son would often be spotted in Dad's Tahoe...  As a result of these relationships, its not uncommon for coaches to drop by  at company-wide gatherings, to share stories and even take the mic for a motivating speech.  The athletes been known to drop in often as well.  Once when Deion Branch rolled in in a Bentley, he pulled up next to a line of cars, and an unknowing manager asked, "so you want to trade that in on a whole row of them?"

Today, Montgomery Chevrolet continues the 90 year tradition as your neighborhood, family owned & operated Chevrolet dealer.  We're still run by a team that loves Chevrolet's, and will keep welcoming you back, and treating you right.  That's why people that love Chevrolet's keep coming back.  Reach out to us and share your Chevrolet story - we welcome you to drop by for a cup of coffee to swap stories, because thats a lot of what its all about in the end.