Car dealers add customer comforts

WESTWOOD, Mass., Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Car dealers crowded together on a strip of U.S. 1 outside Boston are engaged in an arms race of sorts, offering customers more and more amenities.

They include complimentary snacks and even lunches, TV lounges with large flat-screen sets, children's playrooms, boutiques and golf driving ranges, The Boston Globe reported. One dealer has created a "Zen garden" to soothe harried customers.

Adam Sholley, managing partner of Swardlick Marketing Group, said dealers on the "Automile" in Westwood and Sharon south of Boston need to set themselves apart.

"Dealers create these showroom theatrics in order to envelop their customers with a differentiated brand experience, deepening the emotional connection between customer and brand," he said.

Herb Chambers, who spent $30 million on his new Lexus showroom, has the most elaborate premises, including the Zen garden. But a nearby BMW dealership may outshine him when it opens next year -- its plans include most of what is available at Herb Chambers Lexus plus a putting green to boot.