NEW GLASGOW – Ben Smith didn’t seem to mind handing over a cheque for $28,000.
The new owner of Target Mazda in New Glasgow – his family also owns dealerships in Moncton and Truro – greeted Emery van de Weil last week at the New Glasgow dealership, and had him pull his new Mazda inside the building for a photo op.
Van de Wiel, a resident of St. Andrew’s, Antigonish County, was one of 50 recent Mazda customers from across Canada who had their names randomly drawn, as Mazda Canada essentially paid for their purchase. “He had his name drawn so we cut a cheque for him,” Smith said.
“They wanted to do something special for the 50th anniversary, so they wanted to give away 50 cars, which is crazy, but awesome.”
It was part of the company’s celebrations marking Mazda’s 50 years in Canada.
“We had a lot of success in Truro, and this store was available, so we put the deal together and ended up buying this store. We ended up moving down here on Sept. 10,” Smith said in explaining how he came to moving to Pictou County.
Smith said the New Glasgow Mazda outlet is one of the oldest dealerships in eastern Canada.
“We’re going to reach out to Pictou County to help us change the name. We’re going to put a contest on and have them help us change the name,” Smith said.
“That’ll be within the next month.”
