Global Vehicles has named Dan T. Najour, a veteran of more than 30 years of automotive senior management, to be its new executive vice president of sales and marketing. Working from the company's headquarters in Alpharetta, Ga., Najour will oversee a field sales organization servicing more than 349 dealers and oversee the work of the marketing department.
According to GV CEO John Perez, "Dan's retail background is perfect for Global Vehicles because we are a distributor, not an auto manufacturer. Our job is working with our dealer organization to sell Mahindra pickup trucks and Dan's experience makes him the right guy to get this job done."
Beginning in spring 2010, Global Vehicles will market two- and four-door clean-diesel-powered pickup trucks, in both two-wheel and four-wheel-drive versions, produced by Mahindra & Mahindra, India's largest utility-vehicle producer.
These trucks, exclusively imported by Global Vehicles, are compact in size with the payload and towing capacity of full-size pickups, but the fuel economy of a small automobile. A diesel-powered SUV, with similar characteristics, will follow about a year after the pickup's launch.
Najour, 50, has been involved in selling cars and trucks since 1978. He started his career in one of Perez's dealerships where he quickly moved from the sales floor to general manager.
After Perez sold his holdings, Najour spent the next two decades in senior management with AutoNation and Group 1 Automotive Inc. In addition, he twice won Ford's President's Award for customer satisfaction.
"Selling cars and trucks is what I know best," says Najour. "I plan to bring my knowledge and experience to help our dealers during these difficult times for the auto business."
