Power Broker: Juliana Curran Terian, Rallye Motor Co. CEO

Had Rallye Motor Co. president and CEO Juliana Curran Terian consulted a road map of her future years ago, she never would have imagined where that road would lead. One of those stops along the way has been Sag Harbor, where Terian is currently renovating her home.

Terian says she loves the “honky tonk” vibe of the village.

Terian originally had her East End roots in East Hampton at the family home with her husband, Peter Terian, who passed away from cancer in 2002. She has recently located to Sag Harbor, and is especially thrilled to be overseeing the renovations on her home there, ensuring it conforms to the community’s strict historical guidelines, blending the traditional details of the region with the simple, contemporary style she prefers, using natural, sustainable materials and maximizing available light.

It’s a formula she followed when renovating her previous home in East Hampton, her apartment in Manhattan, and, most notably, the beautiful showrooms of the Rallye dealerships. Her team for the Sag Harbor house includes Paul Regan of Paul Regan Architects; Mark Johansen of Johansen Contracting of LI; and Cathy Warren of Broadview Gardens.

A passionate art collector and philanthropist, Terian says, “The artists of the East End drew us out here.”

But back to that road map from years ago…. As Rallye Motor Co. president and CEO, Terian never anticipated becoming head of one of America’s most prestigious car dealerships. She was an architect by training, earning both a Bachelor of Architecture at Pratt Institute and a Bachelor of Science in architecture at the California Polytechnic University. But when Peter died, necessity put her in the driver’s seat at the Rallye luxury car dealership, which he had founded in 1958.

Based in Roslyn, Rallye is consistently ranked among the best automotive dealerships in North America, with franchises including Rallye Acura, Rallye BMW, Rallye Lexus and Rallye Motors (Mercedes), all accompanied by parts, service and body shop facilities. Terian has successfully steered the family-owned business to new heights and through the tumultuous times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Of course the pandemic has affected everything,” she said. “But it has given us a chance to connect in a more meaningful and deeper way with our customers. We were considered an essential business, which made us proud to be able to keep their cars on the road, provide service and sales throughout the difficult days of the pandemic.”

While the dealership closed for one month earlier this year to ensure the safety of her employees and their families, Terian adds, many employees volunteered to come in and work for no pay. This is the kind of dedication that represents Rallye’s employees, which is at the core of how Terian runs her business.

“We are lucky to have that kind of dedication from our employees and the confidence of our customers,” she says.

Terian says that when she more fully immersed herself in the company after her daughter entered college, she constructed a company mission statement that lays out the vision and values of Rallye and its employees. At the core of this mission is that Rallye Motors is a family business and its employees are part of that family.

“We treat one another like family,” she says. “Our employees come first.”

Terian is a Director of the District 10 New York State Automobile Dealer Association, and is a board member of The Hirshhorn Museum of Art of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and serves on its Acquisitions Committee. She also is a trustee of the Marymount School in New York City, and a Trustee Emeritus at The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. She was given the Distinguished Service Citation Award in 2009 by the Automotive Hall of Fame.

Todd Shapiro is an award-winning publicist and Associate Publisher at Dan’s Papers.

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