July 01, 2009
President of Priority One Financial Services Retires
ST.
PETERSBURG,
Fla.
— Priority One Financial Services
announced Wednesday the retirement of Lisa Gladstone, company founder and
president.
Gladstone began the company 22 years ago
and revolutionized the industry by offering dealers the opportunity to generate
F&I income without the financial burden of employing a full-time F&I
manager. It didn’t take long for dealers to see the benefits and profit
potential of outsourcing and the company grew exponentially.
In 2007, Priority
One was acquired by Forest River, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway and one of the country’s largest RV
manufacturers. The company now serves over 600 marine and RV dealers in 48
states.
Gladstone has named Heather Mariscal, vice president
of operations, as her successor. “I have had the joy of working with her for
several years and am impressed by the depth and speed at which she can approach
any challenge,” said Gladstone. “These
qualities alone might be enough for most, but add to that her intelligence and
compassion and she is the perfect choice to lead Priority One.”
The company has recently expanded
its operations to serve as a full-service business office for dealerships. With
the addition of staff and new technology, Priority One is able to offer more
services to its growing base of dealers.
“By helping dealerships with every
sale, we are able to ensure that each customer who walks into their dealership
ultimately takes delivery. We want to ensure that financing doesn’t become
a roadblock and that our dealers have the opportunity to maximize their profits
on every sale,” Mariscal said.
Recently the company has seen an
increase in new accounts. “With these challenging lending times, dealers are
looking to Priority One as their F&I expert,” said Mariscal. “They
understand that lending relationships are vital to the success of their
dealership and Priority One is able to ensure that these relationships
flourish.”
While there have been many changes
within the industry, “Priority One will continue to set the standards of
excellence in our field providing total F&I solutions to our dealer
partners in order to help them exceed their business goals,” she added.