Rick Hunt Ford

THE WASHINGTON TIMES

The town of Warrenton, Va., has changed a great deal during the past several decades. Back in 1973, you would have traveled through on Route 29 Business rather than the four-lane bypass now used by most traffic. You would have eaten at the Town & Country restaurant, which is still there but undergoing renovation.

And if you drove through town on Route 29 Business in March of 1973, you would have noticed the grand opening celebration of Rick Hunt Ford. Rick Hunt wasn’t new to the car business, having spent the previous 13 years in management at local dealerships such as Dick Blanken Ford and Rosenthal Automotive. When the opportunity to purchase the Ford franchise in Warrenton came about, Mr. Hunt jumped on it.

John Konozo, vice president and general manager of the dealership, joined its staff in May of 1989. He had known Mr. Hunt since his intern days at the Redskins radio network, where Mr. Hunt was the team’s statistician. Mr. Konozo has traveled with the team for 22 of the past 25 years and is now the on-air statistician, calling it “the best part time job in America.”

Mr. Konozo and Mr. Hunt love football and say there are many parallels between team sports and the car business. Both are Fauquier County residents, as are a number of long-time employees at the dealership. Rick Hunt Ford is the only franchised dealership in the three local counties to have been under the same management for more than 30 years, a fact that customers very much appreciate, Mr. Konozo said.

“What sets us apart from other dealerships is that we are local folks,” Mr. Konozo said. “We have several employees who have been here over 30 years, and long-time customers ask for many by name. In fact, long-time customers are one of the core assets of the dealership: Just the past Saturday, four vehicles were delivered to repeat customers.

The dealership has a total staff of 54 and occupies 11 acres on Lee Highway in Warrenton, where it moved in 1985. Three large buildings house the new vehicle sales, used vehicle sales, service/parts and body shop operations.

“I’m very pleased to be a part of this operation,” Mr. Konozo said.