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Photo courtesy of Upstate Chevrolet Facebook
Frank Bork first opened up the Upstate Chevrolet in Attica back in 2000.
Frank Bork, owner and company president of Upstate Auto Group, has been in the automotive business for 50 years.
Although his start in the business began on April 10, 1974, his time working with cars with his father made him want to continue working with cars.
“My father was a mechanic, painter and [we] repaired cars in the backyard. We painted probably a couple hundred cars over a period of years, in the early years. In autumn, we sold them and [we] made a little side living on it at that time,” Bork stated.
Those years working alongside his father, gave him the drive to work hard.
“It’s just work hard and long, seven days a week or whatever it takes to get the job done. Whatever it takes,” he said.
Bork opened up his first store in West Seneca, known as Town & Country Motors. A few years later, he had the opportunity to purchase Holmes Jeep Eagle in 1990 in East Aurora.
It was in 2000 when Bork had the chance to grow his business in Attica.
“I got a call from HSBC Bank that they would like me to come to Attica and look at the Chevy store and see what I thought. We made a deal and I bought it, and then a year later we bought the Jeep store…” Bork said
Upstate Auto Group has six locations: Toyota of Batavia, Upstate Car Center in Holland, Upstate Chevrolet, Upstate Chrysler Dodge, Jeep & Ram, Upstate Classic Car Center; all in Attica, and the newly acquired location of the previously known Martin Brothers Chevrolet dealer in Arcade.
From the beginning, to what Upstate Auto Group is now, Bork stated that he never could have imagined that this is where it would end up.
“When the opportunity is there, it’s there, you know? Every store that we bought…it was in a position where there was a lot of work needed, but a lot of opportunity for sales improvement, customer relation improvement, and so we were kind of fortunate,” Bork said.
He continued, “We were able to build some nice stores and we have a great crew of people.”
Over the course of five decades, Bork and his group had likely serviced a few generations from the same family. Bork stated that while he may not remember a lot of names, he certainly knows the faces that keep coming back.
“It’s a good feeling, you know. I think one opportunity we have that sets us a little bit apart…is we can spend a little more time with the customer, maybe [more] than most of the bigger stores might.”
Bork continued to share his thoughts on navigating the automotive industry while in a small town, stating that he is grateful for the local communities that he gets to serve.
“Our local support from the small towns and the small villages are what have been our greatest asset,” Bork stated.
In addition to the community, Bork praised the employees at Upstate Auto Group.
“The crew, [and] the people who work for Upstate have been with us for years, and years, and years. And fortunately for me, they’ve been loyal to the company and loyal to the community. That’s our biggest asset, nothing runs more than when you have a great crew,” he said.
