Owner, LaFontaine Automotive Group
Owner, LaFontaine Automotive Group
Maureen LaFontaine is the owner of LaFontaine Automotive Group with her husband, Mike. Today, the business includes 30 franchises, 16 retail locations, and four collision centers with over 1,400 employees that all work and live by the LaFontaine mission statement: Build lifelong relationships, connect families, strengthen communities, and personalize the automotive experience. Among many other accolades, LaFontaine Automotive Group is listed in Crain’s Business Top 100 Private Business and the Top Auto Dealers in Michigan. Individual store awards include the Toyota President’s Award, the Honda President’s Award, and Cadillac Buick GMC Dealer of the Year for the past six consecutive years. The LaFontaine Buick-Pontiac-GMC store was named #1 for sales in the nation.
Maureen and Mike founded the LaFontaine Company in 1980 with their Toyota Store in Dearborn. Maureen became the owner of the first LaFontaine Cadillac Pontiac GMC store in Milford in 1984; she doubled the store’s output within her first two months of leading the daily operations. Maureen’s insight made it not just a dealership but a destination for customers that included a boutique, café, kids’ zone, and a 450-gallon fish tank.
Maureen has earned a lifetime of achievements. Her individual accolades include serving as president of the Cadillac Dealers’ Association as well as an executive board member of the Automotive Women’s Alliance Foundation, which funds automotive industry scholarships for young women. In 2009 she was recognized by Inforum, Michigan’s premier organization for professional women, with the “Most Powerful and Accomplished Women Business Leader” award. She was named one of the “Top Metro Detroit Business Women” at the Dior Smooth Style Bash. Maureen also gives back to the community through the National Kidney Foundation, Elle’s Place, Childhood Cancer Campaign, Huron Valley Educational Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, The American Red Cross, Cub Scouts of America, Angels of Hope, and U Can-cer Vive.
Maureen attended Harvard Business School in Boston. Three of her children have attended Northwood University, with two grandchildren attending this year. Maureen and Mike reside in Highland, Michigan.
