Billy Fuccillo Jr.Syracuse, NY – Beginning Saturday, there will be two Billy Fuccillos offering “HUUUU-JA” car deals in Central New York. Billy Fuccillo Jr., the son of the car dealer known for the catch phrase “HUUUU-JA,” will open his first dealership selling Nissans on Route 31 in Clay.
“I’m going to be the youngest Nissan dealer principal in the country, ever,” said Fuccillo Jr., in a phone interview last week. “It’s unbelievable. They’re taking a pretty big gamble on me and I have to make sure I don’t let them down.”
The younger Fuccillo has learned the industry at the feet of the master. He’s the son of Billy Fuccillo, a former Syracuse University football player, who parlayed his first job after graduation as a used car salesman into the head of a 26-store car empire in New York and Florida.
Fuccillo Jr., 22, who now lives in Skaneateles, grew up in Camillus and graduated from West Genesee High School.
“When my buddies were out there playing and having a good time. I was always with my Dad. I would go with him on the weekends,” he said. “I spent my whole life in car dealerships, watching the sales guys, watching the managers. I think my dad did this strategically.”
His father wanted his only child to be involved in the business but never assigned him specific jobs, the son said.
Fuccillo Jr. has an easy salesman’s patter. During the interview, he asks how the reporter is doing and how her day is going.
In 8th grade, he played Henry Hill, the fast-talking musical instrument salesman in “Music Man” at Camillus Middle School. And his dad said "Junior" feels comfortable speaking to audiences of 1,000 people.
Some sons and daughters of car dealers go to colleges just for people who want to be in the automotive industry to gain the knowledge they need to take over the family business. “I didn’t want to do that. I wanted the regular experience,” he said.
Fuccillo Jr. chose to go to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “When I was getting ready to go to school I tossed around with a lot of different plans,” he said. “I said, ‘Dad should I major in business? Should I major in marketing?’
“He goes, 'Junior, it doesn’t really matter. I want you to do something that’s different. I want you to do something you really enjoy. Something unconventional,” Fuccillo Jr. recalled.
“ 'You’re going to learn everything you need to know from me, from my team and from the people who run the Fuccillo Automotive Group, people you’ve been learning from your whole life. Just do what you want to do. Do what you enjoy,' ” Fuccillo Jr. said his dad told him.
He majored in political science and Spanish, packing electives with courses in accounting, advertising and marketing before graduating in May 2011. Since then, he’s been the manager of the Fuccillo Kia and Hyundai stores in Schenectady.
“I was really shocked watching him for the first nine or 10 months after college,” said his father, Billy Fuccillo. “He’s a really talented young guy. He’s very qualified to do this. He’s going to be no problem.”
Nissan approached the Fuccillos about becoming a part of their dealer network, Fuccillo Jr. said. “They came and they saw what our performance was in the Albany region. They saw how good of a job we were doing and some innovative things we were doing,” Fuccillo Jr. said.
Nissan has found an enthusiastic dealer in Fuccillo Jr. “I think that Nissan is going to be the hottest product in the country, for a couple of reasons,” he said, rattling off the brand’s advantages.
About 70 percent of the product line has changed. Gas mileage is a big plus. The technology, and the marketing has been completely revamped, Fuccillo Jr. said.
"It's unbelievable. This 2013 Altima, if you want to come drive it, I'll let you have it for a couple of weeks. I think you'll like it. Or if you want an SUV, they've got an all new Murano and Rogue. What ever you want, just let me know," he said.
Fuccillo Jr. said he will be the sole owner of the new dealership, which will be located in the old Dealmaker Ford building on Route 31 next to his father's Kia dealership. The store will be "loosely associated" with the Fuccillo Automotive Group and his dad will serve as a consultant, he said.
Fuccillo Jr.'s transition to store owner is not unusual for the sons and daughters of dealers, said Julie Becker-Myers, who worked as the technology manager for the Fuccillo Automotive Group a decade ago. She's now the director of automotive technology at Northwood University, in Midland Michigan, a college that offers undergraduate and graduate programs in automotive marketing and management.
People are either born into a dealer family, or they work their way up from doing the most menial jobs as a teen to eventually buying out the owner as an older adult, she said. "The fact that he's worked at stores. That's key, that he wants to learn the business, he wants to be involved," Becker-Myers said of Fuccillo Jr. "I think he has all the making of a strong dealership and a good business. He's got a good role model."
"Billy senior worked very hard to get where he was. I'm, sure junior will be a chip off the old block," she said.
A chip, but not a copy. Fuccillo Jr. opens his new store with a tent sale on Saturday, and plans to remain open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.
The new building, where customers will see plasma televisions in the floor and sign their deals electronically, will open sometime in October, Fuccillo Jr. said.
The showroom will have more of a party atmosphere, he said. “I think customers feel more satisfied when they’ve had fun,” Fuccillo Jr. said.
The sales people will be different too. “My dad said to me the other day. He said, 'Junior what are you doing? I noticed that 80 percent of the people you’re hiring here, they’ve never been in the car business,' ” the son said. “I said, 'Yeah, dad, but they come from all different walks of life and we’re taking a little different direction.' ”
Some familiar things will remain. That "HUUUU-JA" catch phrase made famous by his father will carry over to the son's store.
"It's something that's recognizable to everybody," Fuccillo Jr. said. "They know that when they chose Fuccillo they're getting an honest name they're getting the best deal they can get. They're getting somebody who's rock solid."
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