Two Canadian dealership groups buy more U.S. stores

Two Canadian dealership groups expanded their U.S. portfolios in fourth-quarter transactions to end 2022.

Foundation Automotive Corp., which entered Tennessee in July, further expanded in the southern state with a fourth-quarter acquisition.

Foundation Automotive on Dec. 14 bought Humboldt Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Humboldt, Tenn., the auto retailer confirmed.

Foundation Automotive purchased the store from Lonnie Cobb. The dealership's name remains. Cobb still owns a Ford dealership in Henderson, Tenn., Foundation Automotive said.

Humboldt is west of Nashville. One of the four dealerships Foundation Automotive bought in July from Jones Motor Co. is in Humboldt, while the other three are in Savannah, Tenn., east of Memphis and north of the Mississippi and Alabama borders.

"This is our fifth acquisition in Tennessee with an additional two stores in the Nashville area closing in early 2023," Foundation Automotive CEO Kevin Kutschinski said in a statement.

In August, Foundation Automotive bought a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Texas.

Foundation Automotive, of Calgary, Alberta, has a U.S. base in Houston. In addition to Tennessee and Texas, the group has dealerships in Colorado and North Dakota, plus three in Canada.

ALPHA AUTO GROUP EXPANDS

Canada's Alpha Auto Group in November expanded its U.S. holdings into its second state with the purchase of its first Mercedes-Benz store, in Fresno, Calif.

The transaction to buy Mercedes-Benz of Fresno closed Nov. 22, with Scott Biehl and Triunity Automotive Group as sellers, said George Karolis, president of Presidio Group, an investment banking and advisory firm based in Atlanta and Denver. The firm represented the sellers in the transaction.

"We are thrilled to welcome our new Fresno teammates to the AAG family," Alpha Auto Group said in a statement. "Adding Mercedes-Benz to our lineup has long been a goal of ours. We are excited to add the dynamic California market to our portfolio. It is a strategic addition and building block for our growth."

The deal also included the sale of Central Valley Fleet Sales & Service in Fresno, a used-vehicle retailer and fleet service business, to Alpha Auto, Karolis told Automotive News in an email.

Alpha Auto of Toronto, Ontario, entered the U.S. in 2018 with the purchase Wilsonville Toyota and Wilsonville Subaru in Oregon. The group on its website said it is looking to buy single dealerships and dealer groups with as many 20 stores across Canada and the U.S.

Biehl said he no longer has any dealerships. In August, Triunity Automotive sold Jaguar-Land Rover Los Angeles to US Auto Trust, a dealership group led by Edward Glazer, an owner of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Biehl was dealer principal of that store, and Presidio Group also represented him and Triunity Automotive in that sale.