AutoCanada, Shottenkirk among buyers in recent dealership acquisitions

Two dealership groups expanded in the fourth quarter — including publicly traded Canadian retailer AutoCanada Inc. buying a dealership in Illinois — while a couple bought another upstate New York dealership late in the third quarter.

Here's a look at the deals involving domestic- and import-brand stores. One of the transactions involved a dealership group ranked on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S.

AutoCanada adds Stellantis store in Illinois

Publicly traded AutoCanada has purchased its first Stellantis dealership in the U.S.

AutoCanada, of Edmonton, Alberta, on Thursday bought Crystal Lake Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Illinois from Gary Rosenberg. Crystal Lake is northwest of Chicago.

AutoCanada, which has dealerships in the U.S. in Illinois under Leader Automotive Group, said the store would add about $72 million in annual revenues in "an attractive growth market."

"We see strong potential for continued growth and improvement in the U.S., with the right management team in place and the right focus on selling cars and driving profitability," AutoCanada Executive Chairman Paul Antony said in a statement.

In October 2020, AutoCanada and Leader Automotive bought Autohaus of Peoria in Illinois, a dealership that includes Porsche, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen brands.

Dealers Julie Huttig and George Huttig, looking to expand their market reach, bought a Stellantis dealership in Plattsburgh, N.Y., late in the third quarter.

On Sept. 29 they purchased Durocher Auto Sales from the Durocher family and renamed it Huttig Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram. The Huttigs' holdings include four franchised dealerships and a group of NAPA Auto Parts stores in New York state.

Julie Huttig is dealer principal of the newly purchased Stellantis store and Huttig Nissan of Plattsburgh, while George Huttig is president of Adirondack Auto, another Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram store, located about 40 miles south in Elizabethtown. He's also president of Adirondack Chevrolet-Buick in Elizabethtown.

Julie Huttig is operating the Plattsburgh Stellantis dealership from the building used by Durocher Auto Sales but told Automotive News that a facility will be built in the next few years to comply with manufacturers' requests.

"The building is an older building," she said.

Nancy Phillips Associates, a buy-sell firm in Exeter, N.H., handled the transaction.

Shottenkirk adds Texas Nissan dealership

Shottenkirk Automotive Group, of West Burlington, Iowa, has purchased a Texas Nissan dealership in a city near Houston.

Shottenkirk on Oct. 15 bought Katy Nissan, west of Houston, from Keith Mosing, according to the Tim Lamb Group, which represented the seller in the deal. Dick Pryor was the broker in the transaction.

The store was renamed Shottenkirk Nissan Katy.

Mosing is chairman of the Mosing Group, a real estate investment company, and served as CEO of Katy Nissan, according to a January 2021 University of Houston post about Mosing, who is a University of Houston Energy Advisory Board member.

Shottenkirk, a family-owned business for 57 years, has dealerships in California, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois and Texas, according to its website.

It ranks No. 102 on Automotive News' most recent list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 8,756 new vehicles in 2020.