About Us

Thank you for trusting Chevyland with all your automotive needs. We know there are a lot of dealerships to choose from, but you chose us, and that’s something we take to heart. That choice makes you part of the Chevyland family. As with any Louisiana family, you deserve to know more about who we are, how we started, and how we’ve built our legacy as the leading dealership in the state.

Our Past: The Chevyland of Yesteryear

Chevyland’s story begins in the late 1920s when Howard Crumley saw an opportunity to meet the growing demand for automobiles in Shreveport. He opened the Howard Crumley Chevrolet Company in 1927, operating the business at its downtown location on Edwards Street until 1960. As Howard Crumley built his dealership and stellar reputation for customer service, a young Shreveport native named Frazier Jerome “F.J.” Montgomery fell in love with the automobile. The young F.J., born in 1926, watched the burgeoning industry in awe and knew he wanted to be part of it someday.

F.J.’s passion for cars remained a constant in his life, but other duties and responsibilities called. He served as a hospital corpsman in the Navy during World War II, tending to the health of his fellow sailors. Following the war, he accepted a full athletic scholarship to Northwestern State College and showcased his athleticism on the football field before graduating with his degree in 1950. F.J. briefly coached high school football in Haynesville, but he followed his heart back to the automotive industry and joined the team at Francis Edwards Buick.

The Right Place at the Right Time

By the time F.J. settled into his new role, the Howard Crumley Chevrolet Company had outgrown its downtown location. Mr. Crumley relocated the dealership and the inventory of new Chevy vehicles to Linwood Avenue and rebranded it as "Chevyland." With a new location and more customers to serve, the new Chevyland needed more talent. Enter F.J. Montgomery, a young man with a big dream.

Charles Tooraen, Chevyland’s President and General Manager, immediately recognized F.J.’s compassion for helping others, excitement for the industry, and willingness to go the extra mile. After taking over for Mr. Crumley, Mr. Tooraen didn’t hesitate and hired F.J. as Chevyland’s New Car Sales Manager, a promotion that F.J. didn’t take lightly. Over the next decade, F.J. took Chevyland to new heights, building a rapport with his customers and inspiring his team to always look for ways to improve and exceed customer expectations. His belief in Chevyland’s purpose was palpable and laid the foundation for an incredible opportunity.

After a decade as Chevyland’s New Car Sales Manager, F.J. jumped at the opportunity to become a partner in the dealership. Even bigger things were in store when Mr. Tooraen retired and sold the business to F.J. and the Montgomery family in 1979, giving the Shreveport native sole ownership and making a lifelong dream a reality. Thus, Chevyland was born.

While our family’s ownership of Chevyland may have started in 1979, its origins go back to F.J.'s passion for automobiles as a child and his perseverance to never give up on his dream. That perseverance served him through World War II, eventually leading him back to the automotive industry in the 1960s at a newly relocated and rebranded dealership that would one day become his.

Our Present: Chevyland Today

With a heart for serving others, F.J.’s love and passion for the dealership and his customers were substantial. He treated everyone like family and laid the foundation for Chevyland’s motto, “We care about you.” For F.J., he was simply being true to himself and was eternally grateful for the opportunity to pursue his dreams and passions. Little did he realize the indelible mark he made on everyone he met, from his family and friends to his team and generation after generation of customers.

Today, decades after F.J.’s untimely passing in 2000, the Montgomery family is proud to continue his legacy and take Chevyland to even greater heights. With Jerry Montgomery following in his father’s footsteps as Chevyland's Vice-President, Steve Horn serves as Dealer Principal and oversees Chevyland’s day-to-day operations. Together, FJ’s son and former son-in-law continue to expand his legacy beyond the new and pre-owned vehicles for sale on the Chevyland lot that attract customers from across the state. For Chevyland, our focus is still on quality over quantity and making every customer a priority.

Our motto, “We care about you,” is more than a catchphrase or slogan. It’s a promise that comes from the heart and is something F.J. embodied in everything he did and accomplished throughout his life. He was renowned for dropping everything to greet his customers, intently listening to their needs and exchanging stories. He remembered their names and made everyone feel like family because, to F.J., they were family. From his tenure as a young manager to his role as Chevyland's owner, F.J. never lost sight of what mattered and the real reason for his success––the customers that chose Chevyland to handle all their automotive needs.

F.J. would be incredibly proud to know that Chevyland hasn’t changed much when it comes to our customers. Our commitment to you is at the heart of everything we do and sets the stage for a car-buying and owning experience you won’t find anywhere else. With Chevyland, you’re family––there’s no question about it.

The Heart and Soul of Chevyland

F.J. recognized the importance of building an exceptional team that shared his passion for serving others. In doing so, he cultivated a unique culture at Chevyland and built a business dedicated to making a positive impact on every customer and everyone beyond the dealership’s doors. For F.J., Chevyland was more than a business; it was a community he fostered with his friendliness, vibrant spirit, passion, and open-door policy. Today, that community remains more robust than ever.

Our Team

Our customers are the reason for our success, but like F.J., we realize that our team is the heart and soul of our dealership. Our team stands on the front lines, serving you and representing everything we stand for as they continue to build on F.J.’s incredible legacy. Moreover, they embody our values of integrity, honesty, and respect. These values guarantee the same high-caliber experience from our sales and finance teams to our service technicians. It’s a team F.J. would be proud of because, just as he envisioned, it’s a team that genuinely cares about one another and the people we serve. It's a team that follows through on every promise.

Our Community

The Chevyland motto, “We care about you,” isn’t limited to our customers but extends to our community and neighbors because, like you, this is our home. We’re dedicated to paying our good fortune forward by sharing our time and resources with those around us. F.J. dedicated his life to serving others, and we know he would be incredibly proud of our efforts to extend his legacy even further by working with organizations like the Gingerbread House Child Advocacy Center, Goodwill Industries of Northwest Louisiana, Camp I’m Still Me, the American Heart Association, and the Feist-Weiller Cancer Center. We also contribute to numerous civic organizations, clubs, and high school athletic programs, proudly sharing F.J.'s legacy with another generation of neighbors we consider part of the Chevyland family.

Our Awards

Chevyland is the leading automotive dealership in the Shreveport-Bossier area, an honor that reflects our incredible reputation among local customers. However, our impact extends beyond the city limits as drivers across the state turn to us for all their automotive needs, earning us our five-time recognition as the top-ranked dealership in the state. Our President and Dealer Principal, Steve Horn, has also received acclaim as the Louisiana Automobile Dealers Association 2016 Dealer of the Year. He was also a finalist for the National Automobile Dealers Association Dealer of the Year Award.

To say F.J. would be proud of our accomplishments is an understatement, but not for reasons most imagine. F.J. took great pride in the dealership but knew that the reason for his success wasn’t any number on a spreadsheet, a commission, or a profit margin. Instead, he knew the reason behind his success was the relationships he formed with his customers and the time he invested in getting to know them and making them feel like part of the Chevyland family. Our awards reflect those priorities and our success in focusing on what matters most––you––and honoring every promise we make.

Welcome to the Chevyland Family

What is a landmark? In one sense, a landmark is an object or feature that is easily seen and recognized, helping an individual establish their location. Chevyland is a landmark many locals use to navigate Youree Drive, but we’re also something more. We're another kind of landmark.

A landmark doesn’t have to be a physical location; it can also be a turning point, an event, a discovery, or a change. For F.J. Montgomery, Chevyland was a turning point in his professional life, allowing him to fulfill his passion and bring his dreams to life in the automobile industry. Today, Chevyland is a landmark or a turning point in an industry long defined by numbers, sales, and quotas. Chevyland embodies the long-awaited discovery that customers deserve more from their dealerships.

You deserve a dealership that cares about you. Chevyland is proud to serve as a landmark in every sense of the word, whether you’re traveling along Youree Drive or looking for a unique car-buying experience. Either way, Chevyland is here and waiting to welcome you into the family.