Ben Mynatt Chevrolet

From SaveBenMynattChevy.com


Our History

The old Ben Mynatt Chevrolet dealership at its grand opening in 1976
The story of Ben Mynatt Chevrolet Cadillac is a true American success story. Since 1976, the Mynatt family has built a legacy of service to Cabarrus County, and their record of loyalty to Chevrolet and General Motors spans over five decades.
Ben Mynatt grew up in Maryville, Tennessee, as one of seven children. Watching his father sell trucks during the Depression to support his family, Ben learned the value of an honest day’s work and the importance of selfless service – lessons that would later guide him as a business and community leader.
His lifelong relationship with Chevrolet and General Motors began in 1955. Still in college and newly married, he took a part-time job selling cars for Beaty Chevrolet in Knoxville, Tennessee. Ben’s natural ability as a salesman quickly earned him a promotion to truck manager, and he helped Beaty to become the region’s leader in truck sales.
In 1967, he and his wife Grace moved with longtime friend and coworker Marvin Everett to Hickory, North Carolina, where Ben became general manager of a store that consistently ranked near the top of all Chevrolet dealerships in the state. Winning sales contests was almost always inevitable both for the dealer and the management team.

Ben and Grace Mynatt share a moment together.
Through it all, Ben aspired to have his own General Motors dealership. For 14 years, he and Grace scrimped and saved, carefully tucking away every spare dollar. In 1976, the Art Thomas Chevrolet dealership in Concord, North Carolina, became available, and the Mynatts seized the opportunity to realize their dream.
Ben Mynatt Chevrolet opened in the summer of that year. Sales grew, and Ben developed a reputation for going out of his way to satisfy customers, even when it wasn’t best for his bottom line. This customer-driven approach fueled the success of the dealership, which relocated to its current location on U.S. 29 in 1986.
Over the years, Ben Mynatt consistently ranked high among the top Chevrolet dealers in North Carolina. In addition, Ben and the dealership received numerous accolades, including the Time Magazine North Carolina Quality Dealer Award in 1994 and the North Carolina Automobile Dealer Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.
Ben also took his place as a prominent member of the business community in Concord, applying the same tenacity and determination to bettering his local community as to building his dealership. He led many civic groups and boards, serving 18 years on the advisory board for The Salvation Army, 17 years on the board of the Cabarrus County Boys & Girls Club, 11 years on the Board of Visitors for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and eight years as the vice president of the Board of Trustees for Rowan-Cabarrus Community College. In recognition of his dedication to giving back to the community that helped his business grow, Ben Mynatt was named Citizen of the Year in 2000 by the Cabarrus Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Dale Earnhardt signs autographs at the current location in 1988.
Grace Mynatt has also made a mark in the local community, serving as chair of the Cabarrus Board of Education, the founding chairperson of Communities in Schools in Cabarrus County, the first chairperson of the Cabarrus Arts Council and, currently, a member of the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners.
Of the many lives Ben Mynatt touched before his untimely passing in 2001, there is perhaps no one who better reflects his lasting impact more than his daughter Cyndie. Cyndie Mynatt began her professional career working at the Mint Museum in Charlotte in 1979, but after the birth of her son, she started considering a new direction. Ben Mynatt offered his daughter a job in charge of rental cars at the dealership in 1985, and she has steadily worked her way up through the ranks since then. Over the years, she learned about new cars, used cars, parts and service, quickly becoming a company leader in her own right.

Current CEO Cyndie Mynatt maintains the family principles
Now the CEO of Ben Mynatt Chevrolet Cadillac, Cyndie Mynatt has served as the chairman of the North Carolina Auto Dealers Association and has maintained her father’s commitment to the community. She heads or is actively involved in more than a dozen foundations, board of directors and civic groups, including the United Way of Central Carolinas. Cyndie Mynatt has been recognized as a Time Magazine Quality Dealer and steadfastly upholds the Mynatt reputation for honesty, fairness and service – a reputation founded more than 50 years ago in a small town in Tennessee.