The damp chill of Michigan in December didn’t prevent Insurance Auto Auctions from celebrating this week. The business unit of KAR Auction Services opened of its new facility in Flint, Mich. The new branch is IAA’s third strategic location serving the northern Midwest market of Michigan. The site boasts a new state of the art […] [Read More]

Along with an enhanced partnership with General Motors, Enterprise Holdings this week announced the promotion of Christine Taylor to president and chief operating officer and the promotion of Carolyn Kindle Betz to president of the Enterprise Holdings Foundation. The move makes both senior executives among the highest-ranking women in the car rental, automotive and travel […] [Read More]

The newest installment of the Market Insights Report from Black Book indicated how December is turning into a joyous time so far for both consignors and dealers. The latest wholesale price data and anecdotes from sale days showed that used-car managers are finding more affordable vehicles to fill their inventories while consignors are fetching satisfactory […] [Read More]

ADESA has a new general manager for its Buffalo, N.Y.-area location. The GM of ADESA Buffalo is now David Fountaine, whose background includes more than two decades in the corporate, educational, non-profits and government arenas — including close to 14 years with Maritz, a company that provides market research, sales incentives and training/development services. According to […] [Read More]

BacklotCars, an online wholesale car marketplace for dealers, has secured Series A funding of $8 million, plus $10 million more in an expanded credit facility, the company said in a news release. Origin Ventures led the financing round, and its co-founder and partner Steve Miller will join the BacklotCars board of directors. Also participating in […] [Read More]

An experienced manager with stints at both ADESA and Manheim now is in the independent auction space. Earlier this month, Dealers Auto Auction Group announced the addition of industry veteran Ryan Edwards, who has been named as general manager of Dealers Auto Auction of Murfreesboro in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Edwards brings more than 20 years of […] [Read More]

After four straight record months in the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index, used-car prices began to ease in November. Wholesale used prices fell 1.32 percent from October, according to analysis included with Manheim’s latest release of its index. The resulting reading of Manheim’s index was 139.0. While that’s up 3.3 percent year-over-year, the dip from […] [Read More]

Black Book’s representative watching a sale in California as November closed shared this observation: “The most common complaint from the dealers was the continued high prices paid to secure inventory.” Reinforcing that dealer claim is the fact that Black Book’s Used Vehicle Retention Index climbed for the seventh month in a row. The November reading […] [Read More]

When it comes to international expansion strategy, KAR Auction Services has typically emphasized “being asset light,” says chief executive Jim Hallett. But even in its latest international purchase — the planned acquisition of Belgium-based CarsOnTheWeb that was announced late last month — there are parts of KAR’s existing business that it can “layer on” to […] [Read More]

Among other honors the association shared throughout the week, the National Auto Auction Association announced its annual Auto Auction of the Year for Excellence in Community Service award at its convention last month. During the event, which was held in partnership with the National Remarketing Conference at Used Car Week in Scottsdale, Ariz., NAAA presented […] [Read More]