Large Auto Dealer Saves Through Visibility and Vendor Consolidation
Multi-Location Automotive Group Gains Visibility and Control Over Print Environment with FlexTG
Client Profile: Regional Automotive Dealership Group
Operating across 14 locations, this northern California regional automotive dealership group supports a high volume of daily operations across sales, service, and administrative functions. Print plays a critical role in daily workflows, from service desks and sales floors to back-office finance.
The Challenge: Decentralized Print Environment with No Cost Visibility
As the organization expanded, its print environment evolved without a centralized strategy. Each dealership and department operated independently, resulting in a fragmented infrastructure with little to no visibility into total print spend.
The organization relied on multiple vendors across locations, including separate toner suppliers and a copier provider, with no coordinated purchasing strategy. In some cases, auto-ship toner agreements existed without the organization’s awareness, leading to duplicate purchases and unnecessary spending.
The majority of print volume, estimated at 80–90%, occurred on desktop printers across service desks, sales floors, and individual workstations. These devices operated at a high cost per page with no oversight or standardization, making it difficult to control costs at scale.
Without consolidated invoicing, tracking print spending was nearly impossible. Walkthroughs revealed tens of thousands of dollars in excess toner inventory sitting unused across locations, while unnecessary color printing, often driven by default settings rather than business need, further inflated costs.
The Solution: Standardization, Consolidation, and Managed Visibility
FlexTG partnered with the organization to transform its print environment through a phased, non-disruptive Managed Print Services approach focused on long-term scalability. Legacy devices were gradually replaced with a standardized fleet of HP A4 printers and Konica Minolta and Ricoh A3 multifunction devices, improving consistency across locations. High-cost desktop printers were systematically replaced with more efficient managed devices, reducing cost per page while improving reliability, particularly important given the heavy reliance on desktop printing in dealership environments.
Vendor consolidation brought service, supplies, and device management under a single provider, eliminating redundant vendors and simplifying procurement and support. This shift reduced administrative burden while enabling faster invoice processing and clearer financial visibility. Through on-site assessments, FlexTG also identified excessive color printing and supported initial steps toward cost control through user awareness and policy adjustments, with future optimization opportunities identified. Additionally, a managed supply model eliminated the need for excess toner inventory while ensuring consistent availability.
The Results
These improvements delivered meaningful gains in cost visibility, operational efficiency, and overall print management:
- Reduced Excess Inventory — Eliminated $50,000 in unused toner supplies
- Vendor Consolidation — Reduced from 4 vendors to a single managed provider
- Lower Cost Per Page — Reduced costs through device standardization and optimization
- Eliminated Duplicate Spending — Removed unknown auto-ship toner agreements
- Streamlined Invoicing — Consolidated multiple invoices into a single monthly billing structure
- Complete Cost Visibility — Clear insight into total print spending across all locations
Ongoing Strategy
Through ongoing quarterly business reviews, FlexTG provides visibility into print usage, costs, and performance across all locations. This allows leadership to stay informed and identify opportunities for continued optimization over time.
As the organization evaluates future technology changes, FlexTG is positioned to support further standardization and bring more devices under centralized management. Additional opportunities include color management, continued device consolidation, and support for new dealership acquisitions as the business grows.