CHEVROLET
Feldman and Wahlberg bought the dealership from the Layman family.
“There is a component to this that is bittersweet in that the Bobby Layman store was an integral presence in the Columbus community,” said Zach Doran, president of the Ohio Automobile Dealers Association, a trade group. “I think my Little League team was sponsored by Bobby Layman. They are buying a lot of goodwill and community credibility.”
This will be Wahlberg’s first car dealership, but Feldman said he expects there will be more. And Wahlberg will not be an absentee owner, Feldman said.
“He doesn’t lend his name to anything,” Feldman said. “He and I bought the store together. He will have a definite presence in the Columbus community on a regular basis.”
Wahlberg came to fame as a teenage pop music artist in the 1980s, first during a brief stint as a member of New Kids on the Block alongside his brother Donnie, then with his own group, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. Partners Jay Feldman, left, and Mark Wahlberg.
He moved into movies in the 1990s. He has starred in such films as “Patriots Day,” “Deepwater Horizon,” “The Departed,” “The Italian Job,” “Shooter,” “Three Kings,” “The Perfect Storm,” the “Ted” movies, the Transformers franchise and many other films. He also runs a production company and has executive producer credits on the HBO series “Entourage” and “Boardwalk Empire.”
Of his involvement in the auto-dealership business, Wahlberg said in a statement: “I am continuously looking for ways to innovate my brand and engage in businesses I am passionate about. I love cars and the chance to work with ... Jay and represent an iconic brand like Chevrolet inspired
me to get involved.”
That central Ohio attracted Feldman and Wahlberg says good things about both the Bobby Layman dealership and the region, Doran said.
“We’re going the right direction,” he said. “It speaks volumes when a large network like the Feldman group wants to do business in central Ohio. They could do business anywhere. We have a lot of competition, and they will fit right in.”
Wahlberg and Feldman met about five years ago while Wahlberg was filming a movie in Michigan. The two first joined on the Wahlburgers stores, but last year started looking for a car dealership to buy. A broker approached Feldman with the opportunity to buy Layman Chevrolet.
“It just made sense,” Feldman said.
Beyond a name change, the dealership will see some growth right away, Feldman said. It plans to fill a number of vacant positions and hire additional employees. Feldman also has plans for a Wahlberg line of special-edition Chevys — only available at the Columbus dealership — that will be customized to Wahlberg’s specifications.
Doran thinks the Wahlberg name helps solve one of the industry’s biggest challenges: marketing. It’s the reason Bobby Layman become so ingrained in central Ohioans’ memories with his commercials.
“(Wahlberg) certainly brings name recognition, and our business is all about name recognition and establishing your brand,” Doran said. “What he brings to central Ohio is an established brand, and there is value in that.”
The Wahlberg name means the dealership also might draw from a wider area than a normal dealer.
“It probably expands our geography far beyond Columbus,” Feldman said. “I mean, people drive 3 hours for a Wahlburger hamburger.”