Boston Volvo Cars

About Boston Volvo Cars

A small dealership named Gene Brown Motors of Newton Corner, MA became the first dealership in New England to start selling a strange new imported vehicle - from Sweden of all places - called a 'Volvo'.

Things started out slowly, but a few years later in 1963 a young college graduate and budding entrepreneur named Ray Ciccolo pooled the proceeds from the sale of his Laundromat business and purchased the dealership. Ray didn't have much confidence in the main brand at the dealership (anyone remember Rambler?), but he was intrigued by the potential of his Swedish import. From that wise piece of business acumen, a slice of local business history was made. Ray started with a great product
in a great location,
with customers savvy enough to see that underneath the boxy skin was a quality vehicle that did the most important thing imaginable in a car: keep its occupants safe. So he took this great product and his great customers, changed the store's name to Volvo Village, and did something that came naturally to him: he created a family environment within the store. Ray figured that if his employees enjoyed their time at work, they would pass their enthusiasm on to the customer and he would have a chance to succeed.