Little Neck-Douglaston Parade Man Of The Year

Bruce Bendell is the Dealer Principal for the Major World Automotive Dealerships, which encompasses some 14 new car franchises and related companies.
At age 51, he is the Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Major AutomotiveCompanies, Inc, also the founder and CEO of its automotive subsidiaries.
After purchasing his first used car from Major Chevrolet, Inc. In 1972 and then buying the franchise in 1985, Major Chevrolet/Automotive Group has grown from 10 million in sales, to over 300 million in sales, and was the recipient or the 50th largest privately owned business award in Queens, Brooklyn and Staten Island before it went public in 1998.
While running the successful Major businesses, takes a big part of Bruce’s life, giving back to the community is also a big part.. He has received numerous awards, such as Queens Businessman of the Year, Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the Paul Harris Fellow award from the Queens Borough Rotary Club and was honored by the Sunnyside Community Services and the Chabad of Roslyn for his work in the different communities.
He was the past Chairman and is a current member of the Long Island City YMCA board of managers and was instrumental, as the past capital campaign chairman in the fundraising effort, in building a new 5.5 million dollar facility (which now has over 6000 members and serves close to 20,000 youth in the area). He also serves as Director of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, the Long Island City Business Development Corp., the Long Island City Lions Club, former Chairman of the Bell Atlantic Customer Advisory Board in Queens, a member of the Queens District Attorney’s Business Advisory Council, a trustee of the New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens (chairman of the hospitals audit, finance and real estate committees), member of the board of the Mayors Fund to Advance NYC, and serves as chairman of Unisphere, Inc. (Flushing Meadows Park not-for-profit foundation). He has attended City College in Harlem, Baruch college and graduated from Queens College in 1975.
Industry-wise, Bruce is a founding member and past President of the National Association of Fleet Resale Dealers, a former member of the Microsoft Carpoint advisory board, a member of the National Automobile Dealers Association, American International Automotive Dealers Association, and the Greater New York Dealers Automobile Association, a former Director of the Tri-state Chrysler Plymouth and was the former President of the NYC Chevrolet Dealers Advertising Group. and currently serves as a Director of the Tri-State Kia Advertising Group
He could not do all the above without the love and support of his wife Laurie (who hold as M.S. degree in Social Work and is still licensed by the NYS Insurance Dept.), and three talented children, Jamie, Hallie, and Adam.

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