Four dealership groups made acquisitions this fall to grow their platforms in the Midwest and West.
Here’s a look at the deals involving domestic and import brands. One of the deals involved a dealership group ranked on Automotive News‘ list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S.
LaFontaine continues Michigan growth
LaFontaine Automotive Group acquired its fifth dealership in Michigan this year with Monday’s acquisition of St. Clair Chevrolet-Buick-GMC in China Township, northeast of Detroit.
The growing Highland, Mich., group bought the dealership from Pam Moran and Janice Moran, who retain a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram dealership in St. Clair, Mich., according to LaFontaine.
The acquired dealership was renamed LaFontaine Chevrolet-Buick-GMC of St. Clair. It marks the group’s fifth Buick-GMC store and second Chevrolet dealership.
LaFontaine already this year bought Ralph Thayer Automotive and its Hyundai, Mazda and Volkswagen dealerships in Livonia and Superior Buick-GMC in Dearborn. LaFontaine now has 51 franchises at 29 dealership locations and 10 collision centers.
“As we continue to expand, we don’t do it for today, we do it for the future and to be able to better serve our customers and to provide career growth for our employees,” LaFontaine CEO Ryan LaFontaine said in a statement.
Michael Walls was promoted to general manager of the new dealership. He was general sales manager at LaFontaine Cadillac-Buick-GMC in Highland.
LaFontaine ranks No. 43 on Automotive News‘ list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 19,565 new vehicles in 2020.
Kayser Automotive adds Ford store
Kayser Automotive Group, of Madison, Wis., has purchased its second Ford dealership in two months.
Kayser Automotive and Gregg Tank on Monday bought Peterson Ford in Oconto Falls, Wis., from Toby Peterson and Mike Peterson. Oconto Falls is north of Green Bay.
“The Petersons have built a fabulous business, serving Northeast Wisconsin for nearly 50 years,” Sean Baxter, president of Kayser Automotive, said in a statement. “We look forward to carrying on that tradition as we expand our S&L brand to better serve the Green Bay market.”
The dealership was renamed S&L Ford. Tank will be its general manager. He already is general manager at Kayser Automotive’s S&L Motors dealership in Pulaski, Wis., which sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles.
On Sept. 30, Kayser bought Courtesy Ford of Sauk City, also in Wisconsin, from dealer Ray Fregia Jr. The group, with all domestic brands, now has seven dealerships in the state.
Wade Micoley represented the seller in the Peterson Ford transaction.
Kendall growth
Growing Kendall Automotive Group, of Eugene, Ore., has expanded into Montana, and it bolstered its Oregon presence last month with the acquisition of three dealerships.
Kendall on Oct. 18 bought Robberson Ford-Lincoln and Robberson Mazda in Bend and Robberson Ford of Prineville from dealer Jeff Robberson, who retired.
“It was just a good time to hop off,” Robberson told Automotive News. “I wanted to get off when things were going smooth so the transition would be as smooth as possible for the employees and customers, as opposed to one of our downturns. Even though we’re in a chip shortage, we’re in a strong vehicle economy.”
Robberson’s father opened the Ford dealership in Bend in 1957. The Prineville location opened in 2003.
The dealerships were renamed Kendall Ford-Lincoln of Bend, Kendall Mazda of Bend and Kendall Ford of Prineville. Prineville is about 35 miles northeast of Bend.
Kendall expanded into Montana in September with the purchase of Bozeman Ford-Lincoln, according to a Sept. 19 post in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
The dealership has been renamed Kendall Ford-Lincoln of Bozeman, Kendall said in a LinkedIn post.
Kendall has stores across Alaska, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Idaho and sells more than 20 brands, including Toyota, Lexus, Volkswagen, Honda, Kia, Lincoln, Mercedes-Benz and Audi, according to its website.
In June, Kendall bought Roy Robinson Subaru and Roy Robinson Chevrolet, both in Marysville, Wash., near Seattle.
Coughlin Automotive adds Kia store
Coughlin Automotive Group, of Pataskala, Ohio, added a second Kia dealership last month to grow to 13 dealerships in central Ohio.
Coughlin Automotive on Oct. 7 bought Matt Taylor Kia in Lancaster from dealer Matt Taylor, according to Tim Lamb of Tim Lamb Group, who represented the seller in the transaction.
“We are excited about expanding into Fairfield County and assisting the local community,” auto group owner Al Coughlin said in a statement. “The Kia franchise is a great brand. By continuing to pursue growth in Central Ohio, we have access to more inventory and more service locations to better serve our customers.”
In 2020, Matt Taylor Kia sold more than 1,400 vehicles, according to Tim Lamb Group.
The store was renamed Coughlin Kia of Lancaster. Lancaster is about 25 miles south of Pataskala.