Women in Retail: Erin Kerrigan of Kerrigan Advisors

In a key complement to our Women in Remarketing and Women in Auto Finance franchises, Auto Remarketing is proud to celebrate our second annual Women in Retail awards, a program sponsored by CarGurus.

We spotlight these honorees in the Oct. 15 issue of Auto Remarketing, which includes Q&As with each recipient of the award.

Next up is Erin Kerrigan, founder & managing director of Kerrigan Advisors.

Auto Remarketing: What is a book you have read that has influenced or helped your career?
Erin Kerrigan: ‘Good to Great’ by James C. Collins. This book analyzes what makes companies great. It finds that companies that have created the most value for their shareholders are often led by humble leaders who live by the Golden Rule. At Kerrigan Advisors, we are humbled every day by the achievements of our firm and of our clients. We know that we are only as successful as our employees and clients. We also work hard to treat others the way we like to be treated.

AR: What do you enjoy most about working in the auto industry?
EK: I love dealers’ entrepreneurial spirit and sense of optimism. As an optimist myself, I appreciate dealers’ perennial positive attitude, even in the most challenging times, and their ingenuity when the going gets tough. I also value dealers’ appreciation for their customers and employees. It is heartwarming to see how much our clients care about others, particularly the people who make them successful.

AR: Describe a time when you have been challenged professionally and what you learned from it.
EK: When my family and I acquired a dealership together, I was named dealer operator, but I had minimal retail experience. Overseeing dealership operations, and learning the business in real time, was extremely challenging, but also very rewarding.

During this time, I studied all aspects of dealership operations and gained a tremendous amount of respect for successful operators, which continues to inform and influence my company’s work with auto dealers to this day. I also learned that I am much better at selling dealerships than I am at running them, but know that I would not have been as successful helping auto dealers as they navigate the buy/sell process without the insights I gained from that experience.