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“This omnichannel experience is becoming a reality” || Karen Lellouche Tordjman, Managing Director and Senior Partner, Boston Consulting Group

·26 min·1 clip

Karen says “this omni-channel experience is becoming a reality” as dealers blend website, test drive, and advisor visits.

1. Dealer News Today talks with Karen Lellouche Tordjman about how the automotive industry is moving toward EVs, digital retail, and a more connected dealership model. 2. Karen Lellouche Tordjman is the Managing Director and Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group, and Derek D interviews her because BCG studies dealer behavior, customer experience, and market forecasts. 3. The episode asks what dealerships need to change now so they can handle EV growth, online buying, and shifting customer expectations. 4. Karen says she joined BCG in 2004 after HEC in Paris and has worked in the Paris, New York City, and Mexico City offices. 5. She says she is French and American, was born in San Jose, California, was raised in France, and now lives in Mexico City. 6. Karen describes her work as helping clients with strategic change, especially digital transformation and customer experience in the automotive sector. 7. She says EV growth forecasts have kept rising and that BCG now sees EVs becoming almost 50% of the U.S. market. 8. Karen says dealer surveys show many U.S. dealers still underestimate how fast EVs are coming. 9. She explains that EVs will affect after-sales because maintenance frequency changes and repairs can become more complex due to electronics. 10. Karen says OEMs and dealers will need closer cooperation on go-to-market models and customer education about charging and driving range. 11. She says dealers want training for both technicians and sales advisors because they need enough technical knowledge to answer customer questions. 12. Karen says OEMs are expected to provide that training because dealers see it as a priority. 13. She says consumers still want to touch the car, test the car, and hear the engine, which shows why physical retail still matters. 14. Karen says “this omni-channel experience is becoming a reality,” with customers starting on the website, doing a test drive, and returning online before seeing a sales advisor. 15. She says the dealership of the future may not need the same size, format, or advisor role that traditional stores used in the past. 16. Karen says digital and data investment is growing, including better demand forecasting, inventory planning, and pricing decisions. 17. The interview style is conversational and practical, with Derek D using car-guy examples and Karen answering in concrete business terms. 18. The pace is easygoing but detailed, with repeated back-and-forth on EVs, digital retail, price transparency, and dealership economics. 19. Best for dealership managers, OEM staff, and automotive retail strategists. 20. Skip it if you want product reviews or entertainment-only car talk.

As heard by us

A grounded look at how digital car buying may change dealerships while keeping the human step in view.

Automotive retail's digital shift gets a practical reality check through Karen Lelouch's view of how buyers now move between online research, test drives, digital follow-up, and in-person sales advice.

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Want to know whether the dealership of tomorrow still needs a showroom? Start here.

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