In the Room with Eley Duke III, VADA’s 2026-2027 Chair For Eley Duke III, leading Virginia’s franchised auto dealers is the latest chapter in a family story that has always been about showing up. Eley Duke III has been around the car business long enough to remember that his first job at the dealership was exactly what you might expect for a 13-year-old: washing cars. But by then, Duke Chevrolet GMC was already much more than a place to buy a car. It was part of his family. Duke’s grandfather, Ray Duke, got his start in the automotive business after operating a gas station and trucking business in Carrsville. He eventually worked his way into running a Suffolk dealership and purchased it in 1968, renaming it Duke Oldsmobile Cadillac the following year. Eley’s father, Eley Duke Jr., later joined him in the business. Eley Jr. died of brain cancer in 1989. Eley’s mother, Lydia, stepped into the dealership soon afterward, joining Ray Duke and helping carry the business into another generation. Eley III officially joined the family dealership in 1997 and began to learn from his mother and grandfather until he retired. Lydia is still in the dealership every day. Eley credits her, plus some great team members over the years, for being where he is today. “And one valuable lesson early on: ‘we’re in the people business,’” Duke said. Today, he serves as president and executive manager of Duke Chevrolet GMC and is the third generation of the Duke family to help lead the business. While history matters to Duke (his family stretches back six generations in Suffolk), he is far less interested in preserving a family business as a museum piece than in making sure it continues to matter. “Community is everything to us,” he says. “If this is your community, you should want to have a better place for your community.” A FAMILY CONNECTION TO VADA Duke’s connection to the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association goes back nearly as far as his connection to the dealership. His father served on the VADA Board of Directors before his death in 1989, and Eley remembers attending VADA conventions as a teenager. Decades later, at age 44, Duke joined the board himself. After a decade of board service, Duke is now chair of VADA, representing franchised new car and truck dealers across Virginia. For Duke, serving the association is part of the responsibility that comes with owning a dealership. “You should give back to the organization that helps you every day,” Duke said. “There are dealers that expect VADA to support them, but they’re not in the room, and I have a problem with that.” VADA President and CEO Don Hall, who has known Duke and his family for decades, says Duke also brings an important perspective to the role. Duke is a single-point dealer with two franchises under one roof, operating just outside a major Eley and mom, Lydia, with his new honorary “1D” tag, given to VADA chairs during their time in the position 8 Virginia Auto Dealer
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODQxMjUw