Lithia Automotive Group [LAD] is on a serious path of acquisitions, Reynolds & Reynolds purchases Gubagoo, CDK Purchases Roadster and it is going to be a record breaking year for M&A in the dealership space.
- Approximately 4.5% of all U.S. jobs are supported by the auto industry
The Automotive industry has some of the most resourceful people in the world & when the pandemic hit everyone went to work even harder. What was expected to be 5-7 years down the road became an immediate necessity. Online car shopping has been something we all know shoppers do before they come into a brick & mortar store but the ability to purchase a vehicle, finance a vehicle & have that vehicle delivered all in 1 was only something a few companies (Carvana) offered & delivered on.
Soon we saw auto dealers transform their online presence & abilities to meet customer demands to complete more of the transaction online. This lead to massive growth in companies like Roadster whom has a platform that allows online e-commerce type of buying & Gubagoo whom has many products but the main products revolve around direct communication and chat with customers.
Communication & transparency is more important than ever and the companies that have platforms that help dealerships achieve a better customer experience are being purchased by the “giants” of the industry such as CDK & Reynolds.
Dealer groups like Lithia are utilizing their hyper stock growth to fuel expansion in a time where they believe the future is bright for dealerships that can take advantage of the online future and some smaller dealer operators are ready to take a backseat. The reason the Lithia deals work is because they are using the Autonation model & offering more than just money to current dealer owners & principles. They offer a wide range of stock options, blue sky, cash & owners can feel like they can “cash out” without missing out on the possibility of the greatest 20 year run in automotive history!
Autonation – Lithia Automotive Group
About the Author: CarData, Inc. is a Full service automotive merchandising company that helps auto retailers sell more vehicles by engaging online shoppers.