Don’t be fooled by the strip-mall façade at Bellevue’s Park Place Ltd. Behind those neon signs and stucco walls lies an extensive collection of exotic and luxury cars – a sort of candy store for well-to-do mid-lifers.
Perhaps most symbolic of the dealership’s inner refinement is its new Aston Martin showroom, scheduled to open in mid January.
You know you’re in a high-end establishment when copies of Elite Traveler magazine are sitting in the lobby.
The Park Place Aston Martin showroom is equal parts shiny cars, marble, glass, and Italian-leather sofas. Retail-display cubes are built into the walls to display Aston Martin merchandise in the same manner as fine jewelry.
Every element of the sales floor matches Aston Martin’s corporate ID, as each showroom has to project the same sense of elegance that serves as a selling point for the company.
“There’s a lot of protocol,” said Park Place Service Manager Vincent Edwards. “What Aston Martin doesn’t want is someone making up whatever they want.”
Despite all the decor guidelines, Aston Martin’s image really starts with its cars, according to Edwards.
“The tones, the lines, the look of the car – it’s like a work of art,” he said. “It’s an extension of the client’s personality – where they’re at in life and what they want.”
Aston Martins are made by hand, which means only a few thousand can be produced in a given year.
Each car is engineered for even weight distribution, with the frames glued and riveted together for reduced mass and added stiffness. The vehicles are also designed to flex like bubbles during collisions rather than scrunching up like a crushed soda can.
Unlike other exotic car companies such as Ferrari and Lamborghini, Aston Martins are known for sophistication and understated power.
“It’s a refined, smooth, gentleman’s car,” said Park Place Aston Martin technician Jareme Parsons. “It’s not Tom Cruise in ‘Top Gun.’ It’s more like the Top Gun instructor.”
Park Place has all the latest Aston Martin models, which range in price from $150,000 to $350,000.
The current line includes the V8 Vantage series, which features 32-valve, 4.3-liter engines; and the DB 9 models, which sport 48-valve, 6-liter V 12s.
There’s also the 48-valve, 6-liter V12 DBS, which was featured in the latest James Bond movie, “Quantum of Solace.”
Park Place started as a wholesale dealer in 1987, and has since grown into a full-service shop with the largest indoor showroom in the Northwest.
The company’s overall inventory includes a variety of rare autos, including Porsche Speedster recreations, Shelby muscle cars, Lotuses, Spykers, and TVRs.
Park Place co-founders David Bingham and Butch Bockmier purchased the Seattle Aston Martin franchise in 2007 and moved it to Bellevue.
The next-closest Aston Martin dealerships are located in Vancouver, B.C. and California’s Bay Area.
Joshua Adam Hicks can be reached at jhicks@bellevuereporter.com or 425-453-4290.
