V. Price LeBlanc, Sr. was born in St. Gabriel, Louisiana on September 7, 1922. As the third of five children, he grew up on a small plantation. After attending the local high school, he went to Spring Hill College in Alabama, where he graduated in Business and Economics. After college, he returned to St. Gabriel where he married Shirley Wolf. They moved into a shot-gun house and he began to raise cattle. This is where his sales career started.
In 1954, he took a job as a car salesman at Standard Motor Co. where he sold Dodge trucks. After only ninety days on the job, he quit and started his own business. Price purchased two cars, parked them in his front yard with a “For Sale” sign. At that time, his inventory consisted of trade-ins that he bought at an auction from Capital City Ford in Baton Rouge. He would put a little work into them and sell them for a small profit. This is how he began to build his inventory and business, knowing that”there is no field like the sales field because the sky is your limit.”
Price used these successes to further his dealerships’ operations: American Motor’s franchise called St. Gabriel Motors, a Gonzales Chrysler Plymouth operation and, in 1969, a Toyota franchise. With the Toyota dealership making a big impact in the 1980s, Price LeBlanc Toyota became nationally ranked in 1984. Price’s signature “Dahlin” slogan helped to skyrocket sales. This “Dahlin” attitude, coupled with his unique style of management, has inspired every employee to embody that spirit. As our General Sales Manager, Johnny Dearmond, once said, “He teaches everyone how to treat people.”
In 1996, he acquired a Lexus franchise after moving his operations from Gonzales to Baton Rouge. The Price LeBlanc name is known throughout the state of Louisiana as the oldest Toyota dealership in Louisiana and one of the largest in the South. Price attributed his success to his friends, saying “It’s our friends who are doing it for us. Without them, we’re nothing. Our friends have made us the biggest.” By “friends,” Price meant customers. Price LeBlanc has been recognized with many awards for his “built from nothing” success. In 2005 he was inducted into the Baton Rouge Business Awards Hall of Fame.
Even after all of this success, Price never forgot his roots. A prominent sponsor of multiple children’s charities, he has given back to his community and its children, as he always says “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for a kid.” Charities such as the Children’s Miracle Network, the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation, and Our Lady of the Lake’s Children’s Hospital have benefited from Price’s generosity. His generosity stems from his core value, “If you don’t care about others, how can you care about yourself.”
If you are interested in becoming part of the LeBlanc Automotive family, view our Employment Opportunities page to learn more.
