Ourisman Toyota

Estimated read time: 7 minutes

Inside Ourisman Toyota’s $8M+ Online Parts Operation

For most dealership parts departments, growth has a limit: your local market. You can only sell so many parts across the counter, to the service drive, or through nearby wholesale accounts. For Ourisman Toyota, that ceiling disappeared years ago.

With a long history of online sales that started back in the early days of eCommerce, the team has built a national online parts store that continues to grow year after year. 

From Technician to eCommerce Parts Leader

Ourisman Toyota’s online parts operation isn’t run by a tech team.

It’s run by a Parts Manager who’s worked nearly every job in the industry. Chris Johnson has been in the trenches. Technician, auction work, aftermarket parts. No corporate online retail background. 

He didn’t come up through eCommerce. He came up through the shop and the parts counter.

2025 Online Parts Performance Snapshot

1. They didn’t replace wholesale.
2. They didn’t add a massive staff.
3. They didn’t reinvent the department.

They built a huge revenue stream on top of what they were already doing.

Could your parts department do these numbers online? Use the checklist to find out.

How Ourisman Toyota’s Online Sales Beat Traditional Wholesale

For most dealerships, wholesale is familiar territory.

You build relationships.
You compete on price.
You move volume where you can.

But it also means:

• Managing credit accounts
• Waiting on payments
• Shipping larger, damage-prone parts
• Staying aggressive on pricing

Chris Johnson didn’t abandon wholesale. He added something different.

“Your alternative is to chase traditional wholesale,” he said. “A lot of times that involves body shops. Those are bulkier parts, more easily damaged, and that can be difficult.”

Online retail gave his department another lane.

Orders are paid at checkout.
There’s no accounts receivable to manage.
No follow-up calls for collections.

“Trying to chase down payments from body shops can be a headache,” Johnson said. “On this platform online, as soon as you get the sale, the money’s there.”

Instead of replacing what they already did well, online sales reduced dependency on one channel.

That balance is what made growth sustainable.

RevolutionParts Tools That Support Daily Work

Adding online sales doesn’t work if it creates chaos. It only works if it fits inside the way a parts department already runs.

That’s where structure matters.

Johnson says the reason their online operation grows without overwhelming the team is because it’s organized.

“RevolutionParts absolutely makes it easy for us,” he said.

Returns That Don’t Spiral

Returns are unavoidable. The difference is whether they drain time and profitability.

Instead of scattered emails or unclear processes, the returns workflow gives the team a clear path:

• Request
• Review
• Approve
• Resolve

Customers know what to expect. The department stays in control.

That consistency keeps small issues from becoming expensive ones.

Turning Conversations Into Paid Orders

Some customers want confirmation before they buy.

Without a streamlined process, that turns into:

• Reading part numbers over the phone
• Hoping they check out later
• Losing track of follow-up

Instead, Chris’s team sends a quote immediately.

“Rather than having to read a customer a whole bunch of part numbers, you can send them a quote right then and there,” Johnson said. “It’s got a button that just clicks go to payment.”

The difference: the quote doesn’t sit in limbo. It converts into a sale.

That protects Johnson’s time and captures revenue that might otherwise slip away.

Fast Fulfillment Comes Down to Planning and Consistency

One of the strongest indicators of a healthy online operation isn’t revenue.

It’s fulfillment speed.

In 2025, Ourisman Toyota averaged 2.6 days.

Johnson is quick to point out that not everything is controllable. OEM truck schedules, national backorders, carrier delays. Every store faces those.

What is controllable:

• Processing orders until close
• Staying ahead on inventory planning
• Communicating clearly when timing changes

“It’s nice to see fulfillment time being under three days,” Johnson said. “That’s something that we really strive for.”

Speed builds trust. Trust builds reviews. Reviews drive more orders.

And that’s how 32,000+ annual orders become sustainable instead of stressful.

A Customer-First Approach That Builds Repeat Buyers

When you sell parts nationwide, your reputation travels faster than your shipments.

If something arrives damaged or delayed, the dealership still owns the experience.

Johnson doesn’t believe in giving money away carelessly.

But he does believe in long-term math.

“If there’s any gray area where we could have done something better, we’re going to side with the customer,” he said. “If you have to eat a hundred bucks to make a thousand in the long run, it’s usually worth it.”

That mindset turns problems into loyalty. It also reduces escalations.

“The more details you can give a customer, the better,” Johnson said. “There’s no room for ambiguity.”

Clear expectations prevent unnecessary conflict. Less conflict means smoother scaling.

Advice for Dealers Getting Started Online

Chris doesn’t pretend his kind of success is instant.

“Be patient,” Johnson says. “It’s not going to happen right away. But if you stay consistent, it snowballs.”

That’s the reality.

Online sales build like wholesale relationships used to: over time.

More completed orders.
More positive reviews.
More repeat customers.

Momentum compounds.

And when it does, the ceiling of your local market disappears.

By staying consistent and building a repeatable system, Ourisman Toyota turned their parts department into a national online business generating over $8 million annually.

The opportunity isn’t theory. The structure is proven.

The only question left is whether your department is set up to have this kind of success.

Use the checklist above to see where you stand.