Time and Ally Financial Honor Oconomowoc Dealer

Congratulations to Tom Ewald, from Ewald Auto Group and a proud Certified Agriculture Dealer!   

Thomas Ewald Wins National Recognition for Community Service and Industry Accomplishments

(New York, NY, October 18, 2023) – The nomination of Thomas Ewald, vice president and managing partner at Ewald Chevrolet in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, for the 2024 TIME Dealer of the Year award was announced today by TIME. 

Ewald is one of a select group of 49 dealer nominees from across the country who will be honored at the 107th annual National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, on February 3, 2024.

The TIME Dealer of the Year award is one of the automobile industry’s most prestigious and highly coveted honors. The award recognizes the nation’s most successful auto dealers who also demonstrate a long-standing commitment to community service. Ewald was chosen to represent the Wisconsin Automobile & Truck Dealers Association in the national competition – one of only 49 auto dealers nominated for the 55th annual award from more than 16,000 nationwide. 

“The most rewarding aspect of my career is helping others succeed in our industry,” nominee Ewald said. “Being a disciplined leader, an entrepreneur, and a builder of people is my passion – and it has made me a more successful automobile dealer.”

Ewald’s father, Emil, founded the Ewald Automotive Group in 1964 with a single Plymouth store in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From an early age, Ewald would visit his father’s dealership and loved the atmosphere.

“In the beginning, I learned all the basic jobs, but over time I built relationships with our employees, our customers, and vendor partners,” he said. 

In 1991, he earned a B.B.A. in business management and automotive marketing at Northwood University in Midland, Michigan. That same year, Ewald was named new-car sales manager at Ewald's Mayfair Chrysler Plymouth Jeep Eagle, focusing on the Chrysler business.

“Every time I was given a task to make an improvement in an area, I applied what I learned before,” he said. “I also learned early on to be truthful and to follow through with my commitments with everyone, especially myself.”

Ewald steadily rose through the ranks and held various management positions in the dealership group. In 2008, he was named director of variable operations for Ewald Automotive Group and dealer principal, managing partner, and chief marketing officer in 2014. 

Today, he and his brothers Craig and Brian are majority owners of the family enterprise, which includes eight new-car stores in Wisconsin representing brands Buick, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Jeep, Kia, Ram, and Volkswagen, as well as an Airstream dealership.

“I owe a large part of my success to my parents,” Ewald said. “My father taught me the value of a good work ethic and being a good car man. He was tough as nails but always fair. And my mother instilled a deep sense of compassion in me and was my guiding light about life.”

Ewald also credits his success working with his nephews Eric, Brett, and Jay Ewald as third generation partners in the company. “We may have different opinions but, when we leave the table, we will always come to an agreement on making the best decision for our employees, for our customers, and for the company,” he said.

And Ewald creates that same congenial atmosphere within the workplace. “I have been blessed with such great employees who are motivated by our culture,” he said. “We are like a family, all working together to fulfill a passion that started nearly 60 years ago.”

An active member of his local, state, and national dealer associations, Ewald is currently on the board of directors for the Wisconsin Automobile & Truck Dealers Association Foundation. He is proud of the foundation’s efforts to inspire students to choose an auto technician career by providing scholarships for technical colleges in Wisconsin. 

“We have also retained two award-winning retired high school shop teachers to write a ‘playbook’ that a school can follow to run a successful auto shop curriculum,” he said. “Our work on the board is just beginning to blossom, and now we are reaching into the middle schools to create a greater sense of awareness for technical education opportunities.”

Ewald also lends his leadership to numerous organizations, including the Wisconsin Masonic Center Foundation (current chair of the board); Wisconsin Masonic Home (current board member); Boy Scouts of America Potawatomi Area Council (assistant scout master); area chambers of commerce; and high school automotive education programs (advisor to local schools).

For the Wisconsin Masonic Home, he is proud of his work on Operation Freedom, an initiative to raise money to send veterans residing at Three Pillars Senior Living Community in Dousman, Wisconsin, to Washington, D.C., to see the war memorials. 

“Our grassroots effort has raised more than $50,000 to completely cover the costs of flying eligible resident veterans and a guardian on the Wisconsin Stars and Stripes Honor Flight,” he said. And Ewald helped spearhead a promotional campaign that honored the veterans and encouraged youth groups to get involved and pay tribute to local heroes who served our country.

In addition, his company has funded the expansion of a local soccer field in Oconomowoc. “We contributed over $600,000 to fund the project which includes a new sports pavilion for concessions, an office, and fields that accommodate a growing soccer program,” Ewald said.

Other Wisconsin groups Ewald supports include Lake Country Lutheran High School in Hartland (donated funds for new sports pavilion) and River Glen Christian Church in Waukesha, as well as youth sports, reading symposiums, toy drives, local food pantries, blood drives, and more.

Dealers are nominated by the executives of state and metro dealer associations around the country. A panel of faculty members from the Tauber Institute for Global Operations at the University of Michigan will select one finalist from each of the four NADA regions and one national Dealer of the Year. Three finalists will receive $5,000 for their favorite charities and the winner will receive $10,000 to give to charity, donated by Ally.

In its 13th year as exclusive sponsor, Ally also will recognize dealer nominees and their community efforts by contributing $1,000 to each nominee’s 501(c)3 charity of choice. Nominees will be recognized on AllyDealerHeroes.com, which highlights the philanthropic contributions and achievements of TIME Dealer of the Year nominees.

“At TIME, we are proud to uphold the decades-long tradition of honoring automotive dealers who make a positive impact and show dedication to their communities through our TIME Dealer of the Year award,” said TIME CEO Jessica Sibley. “We are excited to keep this tradition of applauding these community contributions together with our partners at Ally.”

Doug Timmerman, president of dealer financial services, Ally, said, “Auto dealers nominated for the TIME Dealer of the Year award have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to not only the industry but to their respective communities through volunteerism, sponsorships, and supporting charitable causes, no matter the market climate. Whether their clients are purchasing a first car or upgrading for a growing family, these selected dealers have successfully extended their relationships beyond the showroom and have been steadfast in driving their communities forward.”

Ewald was nominated for the TIME Dealer of the Year award by William A. Sepic, president of the Wisconsin Automobile & Truck Dealers Association. He and his wife, Michelle, have four children.

About TIME
TIME is the 100-year-old global media brand that reaches a combined audience of over 120 million around the world through its iconic magazine and digital platforms. With unparalleled access to the world's most influential people, the trust of consumers and partners globally, and an unrivaled power to convene, TIME's mission is to tell the essential stories of the people and ideas that shape and improve the world. Today, TIME also includes the Emmy Award®-winning film and television division TIME Studios; a significantly expanded live events business built on the powerful TIME100 and Person of the Year franchises and custom experiences; TIME for Kids, which provides trusted news with a focus on news literacy for kids and valuable resources for teachers and families; the award-winning branded content studio Red Border Studios; an industry-leading web3 division; the website-building platform TIME Sites; the sustainability and climate action platform TIME CO2; the new e-commerce and content platform TIME Stamped, and more.

About Ally Financial
Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY) is a financial services company with the nation’s largest all-digital bank and an industry-leading auto financing business, driven by a mission to “Do It Right” and be a relentless ally for customers and communities. The company serves more than 11 million customers through a full range of online banking services (including deposits, mortgage, point-of-sale personal lending, and credit card products) and securities brokerage and investment advisory services. The company also includes a robust corporate finance business that offers capital for equity sponsors and middle-market companies, as well as auto financing and insurance offerings. For more information, please visit www.ally.com and follow @allyfinancial. For more information and disclosures about Ally, visit https://www.ally.com/#disclosures. For further images and news on Ally, please visit http://media.ally.com. 

About the NADA Show
The annual NADA Show brings together more than 20,000 franchised dealers and their employees, industry leaders, manufacturers and exhibitors to learn about the latest auto industry tools, trends, products and technologies. 

As published by the Wisconsin Automobile & Truck Dealers Association  www.watda.org