Many of the original 3,500 Kaiser-Frazer/Graham-Paige dealers on the books as of March 1946 were prewar dealers for various makes that lost their status during the war as dealer points were consolidated or simply closed. As a result, the early stores were designed or approved to the specifications of other makes. Kaiser-Frazer themselves launched a dealer architectural service in 1948 which handled dealer requests for remodeling, expansion or new building assistance. Later, Big 3 dealers were "strongly suggested" to expand and their buildings became available; those were "suggested" out of their franchises (Packard did this during the 1951 model year) K-F became the only alternative (at least until something better like Studebaker or Hudson came along). I started this department to give you some ideas as to how K-F dealers were laid out based either on things from the architectural unit or dealerships of other makes that were unusual or falling out of favor by the big boys. An example of this is in the showroom materials posting showing a 1940 Buick dealer design idea approved by Buick. See what you think. In fact if you want to, get some graph paper (so you can draw to a scale and come up with some of your own ideas as to what you think a K-F or Willys dealer back in the 1940's or 1950's would have looked like.
1. Floor plan for a small town Buick Dealer c.1940. Building is squeezed in between other commercial structures in a small town business district (c. 1,000 population).
2. This is the floor plan for the smallest sized Ford or Lincoln-Mercury dealer the factory would only allow in a town of less than 1,500 population
3. Kaiser-Frazer's Architectural Service came up with this "ideal" dealership floor plan for a dealership in a dealer point city of 5,000 or less. The rounded showroom space for a second car and extension of the parts department were intended to be areas of future expansion.
4. In the late 1940's Packard launched an effort to turn Packard stores into a standardized design. Here's one layout suggested by Packard in their "Building With Packard" program
5. The last time General Motors suggested a multi-story dealership building to its flag dealers (any dealership selling one or more GM car or truck lines) they put out this design. If you wanted more then 2 stories, the structure could be designed to handle the added weight of extra floors.
6. How the mighty hath fallen! In the early 1970's. an enterprising businessman purchsed the "downtown" Buick dealership in Milwukee WI. The place was to be gutted and turned into a mini-mall. When they took down the fascade, the original use of the building was revealed. The building, on the corner of 36th and Wisconsin Avenue (just a bit west of Marquette University) was built in 1926 as the Wisconsin distributorship for Packard and had all kinds of sculpture work on the inside and outside walls of the showroom area.
