Store on Park Avenue

[Tom Hall 7485]

There's an interesting article in the November-December Self-Starter about the Argonaut Building,
where the New York Branch made its home from the 1930s to 1972.  This was the big Cadillac
dealership in Manhattan, near the SW corner of Central Park.

There was a second outlet at 345 Park Avenue, near the SE corner of Central Park.  During the
late 1960s and early 1970s at least, it was run by General Motors.  Was it called "Park Avenue
Branch"?  If not, what was the name?

[jaxops]

Tom,

  I know that I've been there and the RR dealership in Manhattan, but that was at the age of 8, and I couldn't remember it for anything!

[RobW]

Not sure about Park Ave but I remember Potamkin Cadillac having a showroom on the eastside from at least the '70's well into the '90's. I'm thinking it was on East End Ave around sixty something street.

[Tom Hall 7485]

The Potamkin store, which was from 1972 to 1987 was at 1133 York Avenue (at East 61st St.).  It's unrelated to the GM-operated store I'm researching and was at a different location than the current Potamkin store on East 2nd Avenue.

"Dahling, I love you but give me Park Avenue."  (Song from Green Acres)

[RobW]

Tom
Potamkin had to be in business past 87 at that location. I had a Matco Tools franchise in Manhattan from 3/95 until 12/06. I was on the westside servicing their other dealership on W55 & 11th Ave and on a few occassions went over to the one on York to collect from skips. I'm thinking it was around 96 or 97.
Potamkin Harlem 2nd Ave and E 128th or 129th St opened maybe a year or two before I left the business.

[Tom Hall 7485]

Victor Potamkin died at just about the point you got the Matco franchise, Rob W.  Starting around 1987 he lost the Cadillac brand, due in part to his price point salesmanship.  He was reopened as a Cadillac dealer in 1991.  I don't know what happened to the York Avenue store after 1987.

Anyway, what I'm really interested to know is what the Park Avenue store was called when GM owned it and had a Cadillac dealership there.

[milton]

Wasn,t there a GM facility on the SE corner opposite the Waldorf. I visited it in 96

[Kevin Bielinski #13320]

Wasn,t there a GM facility on the SE corner opposite the Waldorf. I visited it in 96

Right now it's a foriegn car dealership. I was there.

[Vinny]

The only dealers on Park Ave is Mercedes Benz and it is on 430 park Ave which is between 55th and 56th Street.  There is also an Audi Showroom on Park Ave between 45th and 46th Street.  Don't remeber where the caddy dealership was.  I was 7 in 1972.