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GODFREY - Jason Enos has used every bit of his beginning in the car business to create an operation that has been quite successful the past eight years in Godfrey.
Enos is the owner/president of Smart Choice Auto Sales at 1503 W. Delmar in Godfrey.
The business is undergoing a significant expansion with the help of Jun Construction and also recently marked its eighth anniversary. Enos puts an emphasis on selling quality, used cars and makes sure before the cars hit his lot, they are properly detailed and inspected. He spent the first part of his career doing detail work, then had time in sales, so the business fits him and his skills perfectly.
“We opened here on August 1, 2007,” he said. “It is time for an expansion. We are building a new garage and that will allow us to expand and renovate the existing building. We are expanding our lot space and will have a new four-bay garage that we will use for detail work and the reconditioning process. We spend a lot of time and effort reconditioning our cars to the fullest extent.”
Enos purchases Smart Choice Auto Sales’ car inventory from various sales and auctions and has high standards set for what he brings back. All the vehicles at Smart Choice are CarMark certified. All CarMark Certified vehicles pass thorough inspection and have any necessary repairs completed before they can carry the CarMark name.
Smart Choice has 14 employees and some spend time driving cars back from auctions and other sales, while others sell and do the detail work before sales. Enos is the key sales person for the company and again, the business seems to fit all his natural skills.
“We run Car Facts History on all the vehicles we buy and we do a lot of research on a vehicle before we purchase them,” he said.
At any given time, Enos said he carries $500,000 to $800,000 of vehicle inventory on his lot.
The reason he came up with the name “Smart Choice” for the business is pretty simple; he wants the vehicles to literally be a smart choice for customers.
“Many of our cars are one to two years old with a factory warranty remaining,” he said. “That makes the vehicles a smart choice. We sell a lot of SUVs, cars and trucks and have all kinds of brands from Ford, GM, Chrysler and Toyotas and Hondas. We even sell some BMWs and Mercedes products."
Enos says that most of their customers become loyal business patrons and tend to come back.
"About 75 percent of our business is repeat business," said Enos. "We make sure all the vehicles have an oil change and good brakes and tires.”
Enos, who lives in Godfrey, caters to a lot of Alton-Godfrey customers, but reaches throughout the area, especially to Carrollton, Jerseyville, Calhoun County and some of the other areas where motorists tend to drive by his lot. He describes his business as definitely a “family operation.” Often his children come in and help him with customer tasks. He loves having his kids and wife stop by and visit him at his business as well.
The business will almost double its size with the expansion, going from 2,100 square foot to twice that.
“I am proud to offer a good product and serve the community,” Enos said. “We help out a lot of charities in the area and try to be good community citizens.”
For more information, contact Enos at Smart Choice at 618-466-5900 or visit his lot on West Delmar in Godfrey.
