ORLANDO, Fla. – News 6 is honoring the Black business owners who help make Central Florida what it is as we recognize National Black Business Month. Among those Dr. Dorian Boyland, a former Major League ballplayer, the owner of top-selling car dealerships across the country and philanthropist.
Boyland owns Mercedes Benz of South Orlando but before becoming a successful business owner he played Major League Baseball.
Boyland has so many memories of playing for the Pittsburg Pirates in the 1970s. He also played baseball and basketball at the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh.
After being traded from the Pirates to the San Francisco Giants he retired from the MLB in 1982.
But Boyland said it wasn’t his sports career that led him to where he is today. He’s a jack of all trades who prides himself on giving back and helping others.
“Making it in professional sports is 1 or 2%. But a degree or having an education and just being a good person will take you a long way,” Boyland said.
The Chicago native earned his doctorate degree in business and became a thriving entrepreneur with an emphasis on service and helping others. He said it was opportunity, discipline, preparation and mentorship that led him to now being one of the top car dealership owners in the country.
He currently owns Mercedes Benz of South Orlando and more than a dozen other dealerships nationwide.
“Orlando by far has given me the greatest support of any city that I’ve opened a dealership in,” Boyland said of the city beautiful.
Employees at Mercedes Benz of South Orlando said people come from all over the world to support the Black-owned business
“For me, it’s a daily struggle to continue to provide that service for them that’s unparalleled,” Boyland said.
He’s also invested millions of dollars to help children and teens stay in school and stay on track. Boyland is known for hosting events and partnering with organizations throughout Central Florida. He’s contributed to tons of organizations including the National Urban League, the Boy Scouts of America, United Negro College Fund, African American Chamber of Commerce, Wounded Warriors Program and the POPS High School Employment Program.
He told News 6 about one story he’ll never forget when he motivated an Orlando girl to dream big.
“I promised her when they graduated from high school I would pay her way to college and when she graduated from college she would get a car from me,” Boyland remembered.
Then, 6 years later he said, “She says, ‘Dr. Boyland without your help I never would have made it.’ And that brings warmth to my heart because now she can go back and reach back and take care of somebody else.”
News 6 is highlighting Black-owned businesses in Central Florida. Submit your favorite local business here.