Rich’s Yamaha, Family Owned
Owners value working with family and dealer lifestyle
Madelyn Pegg September 3, 2024
This story originally appeared in the September edition of Powersports Business.
Father-and-daughter duo Mike Venziano and Misty Rohde own Rich’s Yamaha of Lockport, Illinois, and passionately run their dealership alongside other family members. Venziano has worked in the dealership for 40 years and was mentored by its former owner, Richard Rider.
“Rich isn’t related to us, but he’s like a father figure to my dad,” Rohde says. When Venziano was 25, his father passed away, and Rider took him under his wing.
“I spent 40 years alongside him, and he retired out,” Venziano says. “We kept going, and now what happened between me and Rich is happening between me and Misty.
“Misty is fantastic,” he continues. “I almost feel bad for myself because she does it so well. She’s a very strong woman and does very well. She’s leading the pack in the country.”
Rohde joined the dealership in 2009 and is now a part owner. She grew up in Rich’s Yamaha, and Venziano remembers when she would play with cabbage patch dolls in the dealership while he made sales. When she was old enough, she started cleaning helmets and then worked her way through the parts department. She moved to sales and marketing and is now the general manager and part owner. Rohde went to college and took CAD (Computer Aided Design), mechanical engineering, and business classes. “That gave her the background of dirty fingers and how to fix things,” Venziano says. “She can stand up against the best parts guy or even the best mechanics out there and tell them what to do. And she’s correct.”
Family operated
Owners and employees of Rich’s Yamaha
Pictured left to right is Trevor Venziano, Misty Rohde, Mike Venziano, and Les Rutherford of Rich’s Yamaha. Photo courtesy of Rich’s Yamaha
Venziano and Rohde manage three mechanics, four parts people, and one salesperson. Venziano’s sons, Trevor and Brandon Venziano, work at the dealership, along with his stepson, Lester Rutherford. Venziano’s other daughter is a nurse, and while she does not work at the dealership, she informs them of grammatical errors on the dealership’s social media posts. “So, she’s still involved,” Rohde laughs.