Clarksville, TN – If you check out the Serra Chevrolet Clarksville website, you’ll see that not only are they “proud to serve the brave soldiers of Fort Campbell, KY.” They are “Veteran owned and value driven.”
Joe Serra’s partner in Serra Chevrolet Nashville and Serra Chevrolet Clarksville is Barry Carver, a Dayton, OH native who joined the military back in the early 80’s and dreamed of being stationed at Fort Campbell, KY.
“I joined the military in November 1982, did my basic training at Fort Benning, and then went on to Airborne School,” Carver said. “I was first stationed near Seoul, South Korea, then eventually got orders for Fort Bragg. I tried to get sent to Fort Campbell because I liked the idea of jumping out of airplanes, but Uncle Sam had different plans. I considered making a career out of the military, but my choice of MOS wasn’t conducive to married life.”
When Carver left the Army (after six years of service), he found himself in automotive retail in Dayton, OH. In July, 2003, Carver, along with his wife and kids packed up and moved to Jackson, TN where he took on a Chevrolet, Cadillac, Chrysler, Jeep store.
“I’m in business with Joe Serra and the Serra family,” Carver said. “We’ve been partners for a little over 30 years.” Carver and Serra bought Tom Bannen Chevrolet in Nashville in 2014. They took over the Clarksville dealership from James Corlew in December of 2023.
“I missed out on being stationed at Fort Campbell,” Carver said. “So, when I introduced myself to the associates here, I said, ladies and gentlemen I’ve been trying to get to Clarksville, TN for 40 years. Uncle Sam had other plans, but I’ve finally arrived.”
Carver is involved in the daily operations of both stores, Nashville and Clarksville. He lives in Gallatin, just outside Nashville.
“I’m in Clarksville at least three day a week,” Carver said. “I’ve got really good people in both places, and at the end of the day, good businesses are made up of good people. We’re very thankful that Mr Corlew built a really strong team in Clarksville. They were successful here for more than fifty years. We are very fortunate to be his successor, and we hope to take this business to new levels.
“The military teaches you how to take direction, and follow directions. These two stores have about 325 employees. You have to give/get good directions, follow through and communicate goals. Once you’ve clearly communicated the goals, you have to explain the steps that it will take to get there, and then, finally, you have to follow through.
“We have two brands in Clarksville, Chevrolet and Cadillac, a premium luxury brand. We’ve also started a commercial fleet business model here. We sell dump trucks, flatbeds, cargo vans, etc. That wasn’t done here previously, but we have a large commercial operation in Nashville, so we went ahead and launched one here. So far, it’s doing pretty well. We are able to service all the local businesses.”
Carver says he and Joe Serra were in talks with James Corlew for five or six years before the deal was struck.
“This dealership was his baby, and he was very selective on who he was going to turn all this over to,” Carver said. “Honestly, his associates have been here for many years and they are a family. You spend that kind of time with 100-plus people, you’re going to be very aware of who you’re turning your business over to. It was about aligning values, and morals, and business philosophies. We couldn’t be happier to be in Clarksville. This is a fantastic town, a growing town, obviously, and we look forward to growing with this community for years to come.”
