Eagle Kia of Riverhead Celebrates Grand Opening

No more driving out west to buy the cars on Long Island; now you only have to go to Eagle Kia in Riverhead to take a look at some of the best in the region.

“It feels phenomenal, and it means the world to me, to see the outreach and the support that we’ve actually received,” McCormack said. “This has been something that has been a long time coming,” It feels great to see that the facility now aligns with our core values. We have always taken pride in developing a customer friendly environment for our consumers and leading innovation with a transparent and professional culture. You know, the fact that we’re able to give back to the community, by reinvesting in it and the everyday consumer and employee that comes in and makes the business run.”

McCormack graduated from Utica College in 2016 with a degree in business economics and a minor in marketing.

He immediately went into the automotive industry and worked his way up within the Dennis & Co Automotive Group holding titles such as  Finance Manager, General Sales Manager, General Manager and Lead Director of Sales for the Dennis & Co organization Dennis & Co. Auto Group, all before becoming a General Manager and Dealer Principal in the Eagle stores.

The parent company of Eagle Kia, also acquired Chevrolet, and ADI, both General Motors related businesses in Riverhead back in December of 2022.

As for why Riverhead, McCormack had a straightforward answer.

“Why not Riverhead?” he said. “It’s one of the fastest growing communities. Eagle has been a staple in the community for over the last two decades. This is a brand-new beginning. We get to redefine and separate ourselves from the rest of the competition and show the community we’re here to stay and offer the best deals and customer service while doing it. Once you have a vision, it just takes effort and opportunity to make it a reality.”

McCormack is aware of the development question that currently hangs over Riverhead and the entire North Fork, and feels that a business like Eagle Kia is the right way to do development in the area.

“At the end of the day, you don’t necessarily look to always change the culture, but you look to build on the culture,” McCormack said. “You look to keep it up to date with times, all while keeping that core value of being customer friendly and facing and making their experience one that is memorable. You can drive through all the beautiful farmland in Riverhead – in a beautiful Kia.”

The commitment to customer service at Eagle Kia is easily seen in other employees, including general sales manager Benjamin Meadows.

“We all operate on a very personal level,” Meadows said. “We treat each other, at Eagle Kia, as if we’re family. We welcome each other into our offices and into our homes in that same manner that we would our own family, you know, and that, I think, instills the same customer experience. Because when you’re just naturally dealing with everyone internally that way, it just spreads around automatically to the consumers.”

Sharing the sentiment of a positive development for the town included Riverhead Councilmembers Robert Kern and Kenneth Rothwell, who were in attendance for the ceremony.

“I was in the planning meeting when this group brought the project to the town, and I was excited,” Kern said. “I see a lot of Kias on the road. This is a commercial zone. It’s great that people won’t have to drive 30 miles to get a Kia, and maybe some people will, in fact, come out here to buy one, and then also give the town’s restaurants and stores some business, too.”

Rothwell praised the location as something that benefits Riverhead while maintaining its agricultural spirit.

“This is Route 58 – this is exactly where these developments should be,” Rothwell said. “It’s driving people from outside of the town of Riverhead to do business here in Riverhead. I think that when you have this many automotive centers, like along Route 58, it brings everyone from all over the island. I think Riverhead is the last stop going east for large commercial developments like car dealerships, where you can look at multiple vehicles, multiple dealerships at the same time and shop within the same one-mile circle right here. It allows us to keep our agricultural heritage, because it allows us to use money and funding to purchase and preserve other farmlands and other agricultural areas outside town. So it’s a smart development.”

Others praised the sense of community that Eagle Kia fosters in Riverhead.

“We appreciate this, because this is something that is very good for the people in the community, because for people, somebody to do this, and for the people in the community, they love and enjoy seeing things instead of going, driving somewhere far to look for what they need and where,” Esther Togara, a lieutenant of the Riverhead chapter of the Salvation Army, said. “And we’ve been able to do our charitable collections outside of this building. We love our community. We love each and everyone, because $1 counts, that dollar helps people in need, and that is all we desire.”

Some made the trip from as far as Connecticut to see Eagle Kia cut the ribbon.

Jameka Morrison-Jeffries, a real estate broker, drove all the way from there to support Adonai McCormack and the whole Eagle Kia team, praising his business savvy and his status as an inspiration.

“I love the whole idea of just showing the community, especially in our community, the African American community, that it’s not just possible for everyone else, it’s also possible for us,” Morrison-Jeffries said. “Being young, being African American, is not a staple for you to use as a crutch, but it actually can help propel. You propel your destiny into fruition by just what you think. So I’m super excited that the community now has a representative, in Adonai, of what’s possible, because if you can see it, you can be it.”

It was a bit more personal for some in attendance – like Fay Thompson McCormack, Adonai’s mother.

“You always want the best for your son,” Fay said. “Adonai is a man that has his own vision, and he’s pursued it. He’s always been a hard worker, always been a people person. This industry is not for the weak of heart. You have to know your product. You have to be enterprising. You have to love people, and you want to give them value. And I think Adonai does all of those things very well.”

Eagle Kia of Riverhead is located at 1330 Old Country Road in Riverhead and can be reached at 866-990-0181.

-PARTNER CONTENT