We are still in the first quarter, but waves are already being made on the dealership acquisition front.
It was recently announced that AutoPlanet Automotive Group has bought the largest automotive group in Niagara.
Brampton-based AutoPlanet announced this month is has acquired Performance Auto Group.
AutoPlanet — owned and operated by second-generation dealers Glen and Steve Alizadeh and their sister May Allison — will be adopting “Performance Auto Group” as its new coporate identity, citing having acquired one of “the strongest and deeply-rooted” brand names in the retail auto world as reasoning behind the decision.
They will retain the name AutoPlanet as the group brand for its standalone used-car stores.
"We're very excited to bring our two organizations together," said AutoPlanet president Glen Alizadeh. "John and Cam built their businesses on the same foundation as our company, hiring great people and treating their valued clients with respect. We hope to continue to build on this strong foundation."
With the recent acquisition of Performance, AutoPlanet — founded in Toronto in 1959 — now owns 23 dealerships in southern Ontario, nine of which are located in Brampton, including AutoPlanet Direct, an indoor used-car showroom.
The others are located in Oakville, Brantford, Orangeville, Bolton, St. Catharines and Grimsby.
John Mann and Cam Champion, of St. Catherines, launched Performance Auto Group with one location in 1964.
Today, Performance consists of nine dealerships carrying 16 brands in St. Catharines and Grimsby, a large used-car operation, two collision centers, and a detail center.
"After 50 years, Cam and I are delighted to have Performance Auto Group join forces with the AutoPlanet Automotive Group," states John Mann. "The Alizadeh's have a value system and business philosophy that is congruent with our own."
"The sale of Performance Auto Group to AutoPlanet Automotive Group means future growth, which will benefit our employees and guests, the City of St. Catharines, and the Niagara region. It's very positive on all fronts," he concluded.
The Dilawri Group of Companies reported this week it is ramping up its dealership presence in Quebec.
The largest dealer group in the country — touting 52 dealerships nationwide — has bought its second Montreal-based dealership: Subaru Des Sources (SDS).
"With the addition of SDS to our network, we not only gain a dealership with a 17-year presence in the West-Island of Montreal, we also realize the addition of a second Subaru franchise to our group, further diversifying our portfolio of dealerships" explained Kap Dilawri, who shares the title of principal director of the Dilawri Group with his brothers and partners, Tony and Ajay.
The new facility is located along the Trans Canada Highway and was established in 1998.
Company management explaiend Subaru Des Sources is well positioned to service and support the continued growth of the local market and the Subaru brand.
"Our team is very enthusiastic and eager to join Dilawri Group of Companies" said Sergio Iacuessa, general manager of Subaru Des Sources. "We look forward to being part of the largest automotive group in Canada and enjoying all the advantages that this entails for our clients."
Having experienced success on the South Shore of Montreal, Groupe Park Avenue is expanding its presence on the North Shore of the Quebec city with a new pre-owned supercenter.
The dealer group has opened a second Mega Centre Occasion Park Avenue, located at 2500 Boulevard Cure-Labelle, which is set to open in March with a special grand opening event, the details of which will be shared on the store’s website.
Laval Mega Centre Occasion Park Avenue is the 19th store in the dealer groups lineup, and the second pre-owned supercenter for the company.
The 15,800 square-foot facility represents an investment of $3 million and is run by a team of 25 retail professionals.
The dealer group anticipates for the first year of operation, the two pre-owned car centers will sell 1,500 used vehicles.
"The business objective surrounding the opening of a second location is to have another great point of operation," declared Jack Oundjian, vice-president and general manager of Mega Centre Occasion Park Avenue. "We can now offer clients an inventory of more than 500 vehicles available at both the South Shore and North Shore locations depending on the client's preferred place to visit."
The motto of Mega Centre Occasion Park Avenue — Park Avenue quality at wholesale prices — opens the dealer group up to a whole new demographic of customers.
Car Nation Canada, a dealer group with stores across Southwestern Ontario, has launched its ninth location and third non-franchise dealership — and the store has a specific mission: remarketing the dealer group’s trade-ins.
What’s being coined as a pre-owned supercenter, Car Nation Canada DIRECT will serve as a funnel for the company’s trade-ins that come through at its franchised stores.
The new facility will feature over 300 used vehicles, and will operate under a no-haggle policy in an effort to improve transparency and openness in a used-car deal.
The dealer group noted many of these vehicles will be sourced from its other dealerships and calls the new store a “pre-owned clearing house.”
The store will offer below-retail prices on many of the dealer group’s trade-ins that have been sold and serviced at other Car Nation Canada dealerships.
“This will ensure a diverse selection of quality local, Canadian, one owner new car trade-ins from all makes, models and prices,” company management said.
And the pre-owned store also touts its own full service department with 16 bays, a parts department and a F&I office.
The Dilawri Group of Companies announced this week it has added a 50th dealership to its franchised dealership lineup.
The dealer group has bought Audi Queensway in Toronto.
"We are proud to welcome Audi Queensway to our company," said Kap Dilawri, who along with his brothers Tony and Ajay, are principal directors of the company. "This is our third Audi dealership in Canada, so we know that the Audi brand is synonymous with high quality, reliable, luxury vehicles."
"This is a great fit for us," he added. "Audi Queensway is an important addition to our Group."
The dealer group is already planning on renovations for the store, and construction of an all new facility incorporation Audi’s terminal design concept is scheduled for early next year.
Doug Ramsay, general manager of Audi Queensway, showed enthusiasm for the recent aquisiton and said part of the Dilawri Group of Companies will benefit everyone from customers to staff.
"Leveraging Dilawri's established structure, processes and customer service orientation will help take Audi Queensway to the next level of sales, service and performance," he said. "We are all extremely pleased."
The Dilawri group was recently featured in Auto Remarketing Canada's "Leading Dealer Groups of Canada" issue.
After adding to its impressive acquisition lineup this year with the purchase of flagship BMW and Mini dealerships in Quebec, AutoCanada reported its best quarter ever as well as a few changes to its top management in light of recent growth.
Perhaps a direct result of its rapid acquisition history over the course of this year, company revenue from existing and new dealerships increased a whopping 82 percent, or $330.5 million, to $733.4 million in Q3.
Gross profit followed suit with a 77.1 percent spike of $52.2 million to rest at $119.9 million this past quarter.
But revenue was increasing for the company’s original store lineup, as well, with same store revenue pushing forward by 8.9 percent in Q3 and gross profit rising by 11.4 percent.
And same store used vehicles retailed revenue contributed to this jump, with rates rising by 3.4 percent in Q3.
Pushing revenue and gross profit higher was a 3.8 percent increase in same store used vehicles retailed.
According to the company’s report, same store used retail vehicles sold came in at 2,523 in Q3, up 3.5 percent from 2,614 sold during the same period of 2013. As of the end of September, this number jumped to 7,559 used vehicles retailed, up 3.8 percent from 7,280 sold during the first nine months of 2013.
In response to the impressive Q3 results, Pat Preistner, chairman and chief executive officer of AutoCanada Inc., said, “Our third quarter results are reflective of the acquisitions we’ve completed over the past 12 months and management’s continued focus on improving same store results. We are very pleased to have achieved an 8.9 percent increase in same store revenue and an 11.4 percent increase in same store gross profit, which, along with new dealerships, contributed to the best quarterly results we’ve ever achieved.”
Preistner went on to outline the company’s recent acquisitions as well as their impact on Q3 results.
“We continue to be very pleased with the quality of dealerships we acquired during the quarter, which includes a part of the Hyatt Group of Dealerships in Calgary, our largest acquisition to date; Tower Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram, a high-volume dealership located in Calgary as well; Lakewood Chevrolet, an extremely well-run dealership located in our home market of Edmonton; as well as Toronto Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram, a metro-Toronto dealership which we believe will provide positive results for the company," he shared.
AutoCanada Management Changes
And in response to the company’s recent growth, AutoCanada reported a series of management lineup changes that will be effective Jan. 1.
- First up, Preistner’s five-year tenure with the company, expiring May 21, 2019, has been amended to focus on “key drivers of long-term shareholder value, including strategic initiatives, acquisitions, manufacturer and dealer relations." He has been named to the position of executive chair.
- Tom Orysiuk will take on the position of chief executive officer in addition to president. The company explained Orysiuk will now focus on assisting Preistner, and will be responsible for overall operational direction and performance.
- Steve Rose has been appointed chief operating officer and will assist Preistner and Orysiuk with operational direction and execution.
- Lastly, Erin Oor will become vice president corporate development and administration, with a focus on corporate development initiatives and oversight of certain administrative aspects of the business.
Editor’s Note: Stay tuned to the November/December edition of Auto Remarketing Canada Digital Magazine for a more in-depth look at AutoCanada’s Q3 results and 2014 acquisitions.
AutoCanada Inc. announced Wednesday it has received approval from BMW Canada to purchase an 85-percent interest in the assets, including land and building, of Auto Boulevard St. Martin Inc. Auto Boulevard owns and operates BMW Laval and MINI Laval in Laval, Quebec.
The dealerships, which currently run out of a 134,566 square foot facility, include a 50-car BMW showroom, a 15-car MINI showroom, a 48-bay BMW service center, a 14-bay MINI service center, and a 16-bay body shop. Combined, the two franchises retailed 2,208 new and 680 used vehicles, 1,661 and 554, respectively, were BMWs.
“We are extremely fortunate to be partnering with Mr. Carmine D’Argenio, whose knowledge and experience with the prestigious and premium BMW and MINI brands in Canada is of the first order,” AutoCanada’s chairman and chief executive officer Patrick Priestner said, “and will be of great benefit to our BMW and MINI dealership operations and our current strong Canbec BMW dealership management team lead by Mr. Charles Dubé.”
With an expected closing transaction date of Nov. 27, AutoCanada will be entering into an agreement with D’Argenio, who is currently the majority owner of Auto Boulevard and who will retain the remaining ownership interest in the two dealerships as well as acquiring a 15 percent ownership interest in BMW Canbec and MINI Mont Royal from AutoCanada as part of the transaction. D’Argenio will also oversee operations of the four dealerships.
“We would like to thank BMW Canada and its employees for all of their hard work and assistance with this transaction,” Priestner continued, “and we look forward to providing our BMW and MINI customers with the customer service experience that these two legendary brands demand.”
It’s been a busy few weeks for the Policaro Automotive Family, which on top of adding another dealership to its franchise network, also recently won a global dealership contest for marketing innovation.
The Policaro Automotive Family, who runs franchises in Brampton and Oakville, Ontario, grew its lineup to eight stores, breaking ground last week for a new location, BMW Brampton.
The new BMW store will serve Brampton, Caledon, Orangeville and surrounding areas, located on the east side of the 410 at Mayfield Road.
The breaking ground ceremony, held last week, was attended by dealership general manager Francesco Policaro; chief of staff for the City of Brampton, Ian Newman; Robert Arnone of R.H. Carter Architects; and, the president and chief executive officer of BMW Group Canada, Hans Blesse.
"BMW is a brand that I have always aspired to be a part of, and today my dreams have become a reality as we broke ground on a facility that we believe will become one of the most exciting showcases for BMW this side of Munich," said Policaro.
BMW Brampton, set to open its doors in late 2015, will be the 46th BMW retailer in Canada.
The 60,000-square-foot dealership is scheduled to open its doors in late 2015.
Blesse, expressed his enthusiasm for the new location, noting, "Brampton is a growing and vibrant market, and we're certain the Policaro family's significant investment will be well received by the community. As an established family business focused on providing exceptional customer service, we know the Policaro way of doing business has a lot in common with ours.
“The Policaro's are an excellent fit with BMW, and we look forward to seeing them grow and prosper in Brampton, Caledon and the surrounding markets,” he added.
Architect Arnone shared the new facility will incorporate new technologies while offering a “warm, inviting atmosphere.”
Porsche Centre Oakville Recognized for Marketing Efforts
Porsche Centre Oakville, the Policaro Automotive Family’s sole Oakville dealership, hosted an event honoring Porsche’s re-entry into the 24 Hours of Le Mans car race, and it got the automaker’s attention.
The event — which coincided with the race, lasting 24 hours and touting more than 500 guests — won the dealership first place in the Porsche AG marketing competition.
After review of global submissions over the past few months, the automaker decided the June 14th celebration was tops.
"We are thrilled to be recognized globally for our marketing innovation," said Policaro, general manager at Porsche Centre Oakville. "With our 24 Hours of Le Mans event, we tried hard to give our customers an exciting experience and to celebrate and support Porsche's re-entry into the famous European sports car challenge. It was a great day here at Porsche Centre Oakville as witnessed by the abundance of current and future Porsche owners that participated in our award-winning experience."
Guests of the event were privy to a family BBQ, popcorn station and ice cream truck, as well as face painting and facility tours.
The dealership even held a Junior Grand Prix, which included a 65-foot-long inflatable racetrack for kids of all ages to race Porsche peddle cars.
And the dealership even had the World Cup fans covered.
Porsche Centre Oakville created a custom World Cup Lounge that played the matches day and night and provided a foosball table.
Lastly in the 24th hour of the event, the dealership unveiled a Porsche 2010 997 GT3 RS that had been transformed into a Le Mans race car, with an iconic red roll cage and a Le Mans-inspired vehicle wrap.
"I want to thank my colleagues at 7 Communications for helping me put together a globally recognized marketing campaign," said Policaro. "They're true supporters of our work here at Porsche Centre Oakville and we're very glad to have them on our team."
Continuing its stream of acquisitions for the year, AutoCanada Inc. announced this week it has purchased Toronto Dodge Chrysler Ltd, which owns and operates a Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership located in Toronto.
The dealer group received approval from Chrysler Canada to purchase the operating assets of Toronto Dodge, and the acquisition was expected to close by Oct. 20.
Commenting on the transaction, Pat Priestner, chairman and chief executive officer of AutoCanada stated, "We are very excited to add a Chrysler dealership to the existing three dealerships of our Toronto platform, an excellent market for auto retail. We would like to thank Chrysler Canada for its hard work in assisting us with this transaction. We look forward to servicing the loyal customers and to welcome all of the employees of Toronto Dodge to the AutoCanada family."
Toronto Dodge was originally founded in 1986, and the dealership operates from a leased facility which includes a seven-car showroom and fourteen service bays.
In 2013, the dealership retailed 615 new vehicles and 199 used vehicles.
The momentum on the acquisition front continues to develop for Canada’s largest publicly traded dealer group.
Just this past August, the group added Tower Chrysler in Calgary and has opened or acquired upwards of 13 dealerships this year.
Dealer group Pfaff Automotive is celebrating a significant milestone this year, and one that is being recognized by Porsche and Audi, as well.
To celebrate Pfaff Automotive ’s 50th anniversary, Porsche has created five limited edition 911 models in Pfaff's honor.
The high-end cars are all-white and feature a red stripe over the car and through the steering wheel to signify the blood line of the vehicle.
Audi is also creating two specialized 50th edition R8 models with customized interior features including an illuminated 50th anniversary inlay.
The Porsche vehicles have arrived, while the Audi models will arrive late October, company officials said.
The dealer group was recently featured in Auto Remarketing Canada's Leading Dealer Group's issue.
The dealer group was also honored at the 2014 Auto Remarketing Canada conference. Andrew Lennox — general manager of Pfaff Volkswagen in Newmarket, Ontario — was recognized as the 2014 Auto Remarketing Canada Dealer of the Year.
The dealer group was founded in 1964 by Hans Pfaff, and started out as a small, family-run dealership in Newmarket, Ontario, and now is one of the top luxury dealer groups in the country.
"Celebrating 50 years is a significant milestone for us, one that I know my father, Hans would be extremely proud of," said Christopher Pfaff, president and chief executive officer of Pfaff Automotive Partners. "My vision for the next 50 years is continual growth while sustaining the same culture that got us to where we are today."
Back in the 60’s, Pfaff consisted of a single VW dealership under the name H.J. Pfaff Motors with just 13 employees.
But it grew quickly, acquiring Porsche in 1966 and an Audi franchise in 1971.
Christopher Pfaff runs the company today, along with Michael Talmage, executive vice president; and Mark Fisher, chief operating officer.
Since Christopher assumed control of the company in 1986, Pfaff has expanded from the single dealership in Newmarket to thirteen stores across Canada including: Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi, Toyota, McLaren, Pagani, BMW, Pfaff Autoworks, Pfaff Leasing and Pfaff Tuning.
Today, Pfaff Automotive Partners employs more than 450 employees.
"Everyone at Pfaff has an innate enthusiasm for the brands we sell, if we don't believe in it, we won't sell it, and this is what has led us to 50 years of success," says Christopher Pfaff.
Pfaff Automotive Partners has earned numerous awards over the years including one of Canada's Best Managed Companies for four consecutive years and Automotive News Best Dealerships to Work For in 2013 and 2014.
