You don’t choose a Ferrari; Ferrari chooses you.

And if you want to own one, you will need more than a trunk full of cash. With models starting around $ 250,000 and quickly climbing into the millions, wealth is presumed and discretion is paramount. Fame won’t give you preferential treatment, nor a CEO title. Loyalty is the key motto.

“It’s a process,” says Chase Hawkins, CEO of Pohlad Company Carousel Motor Group, which opened Minnesota’s first and only Ferrari dealership, called Performance of the Twin Cities, in July. The showroom on I-394 in Golden Valley is one of 40 nationwide; the closest to the east and west are in Chicago and Denver.

Carousel’s portfolio includes seven other Twin Cities dealerships, including Audi and Porsche on both sides of the river and BMW of Minnetonka. The group had been pursuing Ferrari for several years. “The economics of this market definitely support a Ferrari price,” says Hawkins. “Once [the Ferrari brand] Including the number of Fortune 500s, sports teams and wealthy individuals here, it was very easy.

Of course, the demographics that look promising on paper haven’t always been in favor of luxury brands in Minneapolis, a city that has the distinction of having lost a trio of upscale department stores (Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale’s).

Cars are different, says Hawkins, whose automotive career has allowed him to observe how the wealthiest buy in markets around the world. “In Chicago, they quickly call whatever they want and don’t always get it right. Here, they take their time to make a decision.

“We just can’t give you a timeline as to whether or when you’ll get a car. ”

—Chase Hawkins, CEO, Carousel Motor Group

And this is the approach that must be brought to Twin Cities Performance. There are only two shiny sports cars on the spacious showroom floor, and no, you can’t take them for a test drive. Every Ferrari is made to order, right down to the seams. Hawkins tours a private meeting room right next to the showroom where serious buyers go to select their leather and chrome. “Ferrari even allows you to incorporate your own materials if there’s something special for you, with company approval, of course,” he says. “Every vehicle that Ferrari builds is part of its history. “

The Minnesota chapter of the Ferrari Club of America, although smaller than that of Wisconsin, has 80 active members. Club president Steve Hark estimates more than 200 Ferraris are parked in garages across the state as most members own more than one. This includes some of the rarest models in existence, he says, valued at over $ 50 million. “We’re lucky to have them here,” says Hark, CEO of Entourage Event Group, which owns or manages several local sites including the Fine Line and the Armory.

The only way to access rare models is to prove that you are capable of maintaining a more “entry-level” Ferrari, which Hawkins acknowledges creates a Catch-22 for those who want to be part of this exclusive club. “We would never say you don’t qualify,” says Hawkins. “We say we’re happy to work with you and here’s how the process goes: We can place your order… we just can’t give you a deadline on whether or when you’ll receive a car. “

Hawkins advises newbies to start with a used Ferrari, which Twin Cities Performance also sells. But for most buyers, the attraction is to build their own car. Orders currently average between one and three years to fill, says Hawkins.

Meanwhile, these 200 Ferraris in local garages occupy the Twin Cities Performance after-sales service. Even an annual maintenance check starts at almost $ 1,000. Before the local store opened, Ferrari owners would ship their cars to Chicago for repair (a trailer sent by one of two Ferrari dealerships in Chicago made weekly trips to the Twin Cities). Service appointments at Twin Cities Performance were booked two months in advance over the summer.

Hark hopes the relative ease of local maintenance will make owners drive their cars more. Because Ferraris tend to increase in value over time, “Ferrari owners aren’t really known to drive their cars a lot. We are trying to change that mentality, by organizing events where people can enjoy their cars more. “

And perhaps an increased cohort of sleek Italian machines rolling around Lake Minnetonka will pave the way for other luxury car brands in this market. “We don’t have a McLaren, Lamborghini or Rolls-Royce here,” says Hawkins. “I think there is room. It’s limited, but there is probably an opportunity.