Ryan Chevrolet purchases Bismarck’s Corwin Churchill Motors

February 4, 2010 -- Ryan Auto Group President Kathy Gaddie announced Wednesday the acquisition of Corwin Churchill Motors, a Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler dealership in Bismarck.

"We started having the conversation in September. Mike (Gaddie) and Bruce (Whittey) were talking about something else but then they got this idea and it gelled from there," she said.

Like Ryan Auto Groups, Corwin Churchill Motors is a second-generation family dealership. Owner Bruce Whittey's father, Charles, purchased the company in the 1950s. As part of the transition, Whittey will assume the role of general manager of the Bismarck dealership while Mike Gaddie will be the dealer and president.

"This change allows us to provide a better level of service and inventory, and that is a good thing for our customers and our team," Whittey said.

With the business deal officially closed on Tuesday, Corwin Churchill Motors, located on Interstate 94 near the Memorial Bridge, Bismarck has become the third town in which Ryan does business the company operates Ryan Chevrolet and Ryan GMC in Minot and Ryan Motors in Williston.

"My husband and I have always looked at how we could diversify our business. Keeping one manufacturer or staying in one community was not our vision," Gaddie said. "We knew we wanted to stay in North Dakota because it's what we know and it's where we want to be, but we also wanted to make sure we are moving forward. We have two children in the business too, so we are trying to grow it for them."

Gaddie said the Bismarck store will be very similar to the rest of Ryan Auto Group's locations in terms of pricing, service and inventory. As for taking on the Ryan name, she said Corwin Churchill Motors would keep its name in the short-term while the company evaluates any name-change possibility through market analysis and research.

Prominent local car dealer Tom Wood dies

February 4, 2010 -- Indianapolis, IN -- Tom Wood, one of the city’s most prominent car dealers, died Thursday morning.

Wood, who had been battling lung cancer, would have turned 78 on Friday.

As CEO of Tom Wood Automotive Group, he grew the company to include 12 automotive franchises sold in dealerships in Indianapolis; Anderson; Lexington, Ky.; and Richfield, Minn.

Some of the car brands Tom Wood Automotive Group sells include Ford, Honda, Toyota and Volvo.

Wood started in the auto industry while attending Western Michigan University, according to the company’s Web site. He began as a new-car salesman at a Mercury-Edsel dealer, and he later bought a small Hillman Sunbeam dealership in Kalamazoo, Mich.

He moved to Indianapolis in 1967, to purchase the Hedges Pontiac dealership on East Washington Street.

Wood is survived by his wife, Julie, and two sons.

Bergstrom buys Green Bay Cadillac dealership

Feb. 4, 2010 -- Neenah-based Bergstrom Automotive said Thursday it has acquired Denil-Wall Cadillac in Green Bay. The transaction is scheduled to close on March 1.

"Denil-Wall Cadillac has been a fixture in Green Bay for many years. Bergstrom Automotive has represented Cadillac in Wisconsin for over 25 years, and we believe the Cadillac brand will be one of the premier vehicle brands for many years to come," said John Bergstrom, chairman and CEO of Bergstrom Automotive.

"This is a great opportunity for us in Green Bay, which we consider to be one of our most important markets," Bergstrom added.

The Cadillac dealership will be located at the Highway 41-Oneida Street interchange, formerly the home of Saturn of Green Bay. The facility will sell and service new and used Cadillacs, and offer a full line-up of other GM certified and luxury used vehicles.

Bergstrom Automotive is one of the top 50 automotive retailers in the U.S. and is owned by John and Richard Bergstrom.

The Bergstrom organization sells and services the following franchises: Acura, Audi, BMW, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Honda, Hummer, Hyundai, Jaguar, Jeep, Land Rover, Lexus, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Porsche, Saab, Scion, smart, Subaru, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo in 30 facilities throughout Wisconsin.

AutoNation CEO Predicts Vehicle Sales Will See a Big Increase in 2010

If Mike Jackson is right, the auto loan and entire U.S. automotive industry will be on the road to recovery in 2010. Jackson, CEO of AutoNation, the country’s largest dealership chain, told CNBC that the industry will sell one million more vehicles this year than it did in 2009.

This could prove difficult, as most car loan lenders and banks still have tighter credit criteria and aren’t taking as many risks on consumers with bad credit. Although it’s been a bit easier for consumers with good or great credit to get approved for an auto loan, it’s still difficult for those with subprime credit scores.

“People know the worst is over and we have some level of credit to put them in a car,” Jackson said. “It's still going to be a difficult year but we're going to have a selling rate of 11.5 million units in the U.S. vs. 10.5 (million) in '09.”

Jackson spoke at the Detroit auto show Wednesday and said the U.S. government should be given credit for saving the auto industry, CNBC reports.

“Let's be perfectly frank: The mood at the auto show a year ago was, ‘Will there be an auto show in 2010?’” Jackson said. “Quite frankly without government intervention there would be no auto show this year. The American automobile industry would be shut down.”

“Pickup trucks are going to recover from one million units today to over two million units in three years,” Jackson said. “It's a housing play, it's a recovery-in-America play. The replacement of pickup trucks is years behind as far as commercial demand. To give up that segment and walk away from it because of government prodding would be a mistake.”

While a prediction like this would be a positive step forward for the industry, it’s not based on any specific figures. Jackson didn’t attribute or back-up his automotive sales prediction to any data or concrete evidence.

Denver Colorado car dealership settles bias suit for $1.5 million

DENVER COLORADO -- A Colorado car dealership has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle a sex- and age-discrimination lawsuit. Arapahoe Motors, doing business as Ralph Schomp Automotive, will pay $1.505 million and "furnish other relief" to settle a suit against the company filed by the federal government on behalf of 10 former employees, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Thursday.

In a statement, the dealership said the decision to settle is an effort to protect the company and employees from economic hardship. Ralph Schomp said that it still denies all the allegations.

The five women represented by the EEOC were "subjected to sex discrimination and a sexually hostile work environment while employed by the car dealership," the EEOC said in a news release.

The EEOC also alleged that five "older" employees were fired because of their ages and replaced with younger, less-experienced workers.

KIA store opens in old Saturn dealership space in Fairfield CA

FAIRFIELD CA -- Asian automakers have something to smile -- and frown -- about.

Last year, their sales rose to 47.4 percent of the U.S. car and truck market, dethroning Detroit's Big 3, which slipped to 44.2 percent; but, in 2010, Asian vehicle sales will face a good, old-fashioned fight as American companies roll out a fleet of small, fuel-efficient cars.

Analysts say all automakers that sell cars and trucks in the United States will try to woo cautious consumers still nervous about heavy debt, high unemployment and rising gas prices. The battle -- as recently evinced at the Detroit auto show earlier this month -- will center on small and midsize cars, as well as alternative-fuel models that run on electric batteries or gas-electric hybrids.

The developments do not faze David Barnes, manager of the newly opened KIA of Fairfield, the sole KIA-only dealership in Solano County, on Auto Plaza Court, near the Green Valley Road exit off Interstate 80.

He noted the automaker's profits rose in the just-ended fourth quarter, beating Wall Street's forecasts, and expects the trend to continue well into the new year.

"I don't see signs of that slowing down anytime soon," said Barnes, who supervises 25 employees at the dealership, formerly Saturn of Fairfield.

Citing four new vehicle models introduced in 2010, he said the Korea-based company has "made huge improvements."

"KIA was, at one time, perceived to make cheap, almost throwaway, cars. That's not what I've seen in the first two weeks I've been here," he said.

A subsidiary of Hyundai, KIA primarily makes and sells commercial vehicles, passenger cars, and recreational vehicles.

The company's major models are Rio, Soul, Forte, Optima, Amanti, Rondo, Sportage, Sedona, Sorento and Borrego. The new Fairfield showroom and lot earlier this week were filled with several shiny new examples, ready for the dealership's official pre-grand opening Jan. 26 to Feb. 1.

Anthony Garcia, a sales manager, said prices range from roughly $13,000 for the Rio to $30,000 for the Borrego, an eight-passenger vehicle. The Sorento retails for about $23,000, depending on the accessories package, and the Sportage, a small SUV, comes with a base sticker price of $17,000.

The company boasts seven repair and service bays, Garcia noted, and KIA of Fairfield will continue to service all Saturn vehicles.

Barnes, who began his auto sales career at age 13, washing cars, said the new dealership is part of a family-owned dealer group that includes Platinum Chevrolet in Santa Rosa.

"My father is in the business and has been for as long as I can remember," he said. "This has been a lifelong passion of mine, and now I look forward to the great opportunity with KIA," he said.

Like any good small-business owner, Barnes said customer satisfaction, whether a buyer wants a new or used vehicle, is his top priority.

"Making friends, first; and selling our friends a car, second," he added. "We are very much customer-oriented."

As a manager, Barnes, a graduate of Northwood University, a business college in Michigan, ascribes to a laid-back approach.

"I feel it's important to positively reinforce good deeds or good work, while, at the same time, making sure we are all playing fair, according to the rules at hand," he said.

Although Detroit's vital signs are improving -- a trend that bodes well for the U.S. economy in general and KIA's fortunes in particular -- consumers, troubled by unemployment rates of 10 percent nationwide and more than 12 percent in California, are still recession-minded, he said.

"Business is tough," said Barnes. "But ... if we continue to do the right thing and take care of our loyal customers, better times are ahead."

He conceded Toyota and Honda outsell virtually all other makes in Solano County, because "the public perceives them to be better."

But Barnes, eager to boost his product, said KIA vehicles are comparable in quality to the top-selling Asian cars.

"The quality is equal to, if not better than, what those other makes offer," he said. "And, in order to be the best, you have to beat the best ... that's where our sights are set."

What recession? Maybe. But that’s not stopping Subaru from opening a New Store

How can there be a recession when so many companies are opening new locations? In today’s economy when many businesses are closing their doors or cutting staff levels, some companies are opening new stores and even building new places in which to do business.

Center Subaru will be opening a new dealership just down the road from its current location in the early spring. Owner Phil Porter said the new dealership, which will be able to house approximately 70 more vehicles than the current location, should be ready to open in March of this year, depending on when the builders can lay asphalt.

Porter said he was able to open the new dealership because of brand power. Subaru offers a good product at a good price, he said, and has increased its total sales and market share within the last year by 15 percent.

“Subaru is a brand that has weathered the stormy economy very well. We have a very loyal owner base, and we do a lot of sales based on referrals from previous customers,” said Porter.

The new dealership will be able to carry an increased inventory over the current location, and will not be restrained by space. The current dealership carries any inventory of 110 vehicles, and the new location, which is only four blocks away will be able to handle 180 vehicles. The increase in vehicles will also mean an increase in staff levels, too. Porter said the dealership will increase in staff, “not by very much”, but it will mean more automotive jobs in the area.

Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce President JoAnn Ryan was positive about the new dealership and several other businesses that will be coming to the area.

“I think it’s a positive sign for the economy that they (Center Subaru) are able to open a new dealership. This is a sign that the economy is turning around,” Ryan said.

Other large stores, such as Lowe’s Home Improvement, which opened in July of 2009, and Stop and Shop, which will be opening soon, will certainly offer the chance of employment for more residents in the city, and the area.

“The potential for this region of the state is great, it is a great area for businesses to grow,” Ryan said.

Stop and Shop will be opening a new location on Torringford Street across from Walmart in the near future. The grocery giant will open a second store across from the Price Chopper and Walmart. With the addition of these larger “big box” stores, one would think that smaller stores would be forced to close up, or move out of town. Mayor Ryan Bingham believes this scenario is unlikely.

“It’s a balance with retail stores, there will always be a place for smaller markets, and they do succeed in Torrington,” said Bingham.

“At the same time, we don’t want to over-expose ourselves with big box stores,” added Bingham.