INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kerrigan Advisors, a leading sell-side advisory firm to auto dealers in the U.S., represented owner Ron Bubar in the sale of Grand Junction Subaru and Grand Junction Volkswagen in Grand Junction, Colorado to Sonic Automotive (NYSE: SAH).
The transaction marks the 118th and 119th dealership sale that Kerrigan Advisors has advised on in just the last six years, making the firm today’s most active sell-side advisor to the highest value transactions in auto retail. This transaction illustrates Kerrigan Advisors’ success in representing the highest quality clients nationwide, extending from individual dealerships to Top 150 dealership groups and the firm’s ability to leverage its robust, proprietary buyer database to identify the best buyer for each client.
“Having the opportunity to represent quality dealerships like Grand Junction Subaru and Grand Junction Volkswagen was an honor for our team,” said Ryan Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “Grand Junction Subaru has been the largest volume dealership by new unit sales, in Mesa County, Colorado for six consecutive years. Finding a buyer who appreciated the strength of two award-winning dealerships with proven best practices was our goal in this engagement. It was a pleasure to work with Ron Bubar and navigate through today’s active, and competitive, auto dealership buy/sell market.”
A key part of Kerrigan Advisors’ approach to representing Grand Junction Subaru and Grand Junction Volkswagen was to provide insight into this attractive Colorado market, particularly in discussion with out-of-market buyers. Grand Junction is one of the fastest growing cities in Colorado, one of the most affordable places to live in the state, and Subarus and Volkswagens have significant market share: Volkswagen’s market share in Colorado is 30% higher than the US average, and Subaru is the second highest-selling brand in the state.
“We never took the popularity of our cars for granted, and made customer service our top priority every day,” said Ron Bubar, Owner of Grand Junction Subaru and Grand Junction Volkswagen. “The success we’ve had over the years is a direct reflection of our tireless efforts to keep the customer experience front and center – no matter what challenges came our way. Kerrigan Advisors brought that same sense of commitment and dedication to the way they represented my dealerships. As a result, they were able to reflect to the marketplace an accurate picture of the dealerships’ value, both in terms of the quality of the assets and the importance of our people.”
“In today’s record-breaking buy/sell market, it was important to identify a buyer who recognized the value of what Ron and his team created in Grand Junction and the tremendous benefits of operating in the Grand Junction market,” said Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “Sonic Automotive really understood the unique position these dealerships held in their community and also has a powerful commitment to customer service that will ensure Grand Junction’s legacy continues.”
The Grand Junction dealerships have a strong track record of award-winning performances. In 2019, Grand Junction Subaru received the Subaru Love Promise Gold Award, and Grand Junction Volkswagen was named a Gold Pin Winner in 2019. Both awards recognize customer satisfaction and community involvement. The dealerships are also highly regarded online by JD Power, DealerRater and CarGurus. Notably, Grand Junction Volkswagen has won DealerRater’s Consumer Satisfaction Award for all dealerships in the state of Colorado for four consecutive years.
Kerrigan Advisors is the most active sell-side advisor on larger transactions in the auto retail industry, achieving the highest sale price per client of any firm over the last five years. The firm attributes its success to its team’s laser-focus on fulfilling each client’s personal and professional goals. In addition to its sell-side advisory work, the firm offers strategic consulting services to dealers and their families, including growth planning, capital raising and valuation analysis, creating value at every stage of the auto retail lifecycle.
Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors’ signature blue sky charts, multiples, and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. To download a preview of the report, click here. The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the US market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail. To access The Kerrigan Index™, click here. To read the 2020 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here.
About Kerrigan Advisors
Kerrigan Advisors is a leading sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers in the US. The firm advises the industry’s leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Kerrigan Advisors has represented on some of auto retail’s largest transactions, including seven of the Top 150 Dealership Groups in the US, more than any other firm in the industry. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, the firm does not take listings, rather they develop a customized approach for each client to achieve their personal and financial goals. In addition to Kerrigan Advisors’ sell-side advisory and capital raising services, the firm also provides a suite of consulting services including growth strategy, market valuation assessments, capital allocation, transactional due diligence, open point proposals, operational improvement and real estate due diligence.
Kerrigan Advisors publishes The Blue Sky Report®, which is the auto industry's most comprehensive and authoritative quarterly report of dealership buy/sell activity and franchise values, received by nearly 10,000 industry participants in 35 countries. To register to receive The Blue Sky Report®, click here. Kerrigan Advisors also publishes The Kerrigan Index™, the only monthly index tracking the seven publicly traded auto retail companies. To access The Kerrigan Index™, click here. To read the 2020 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here. Kerrigan Advisors also is the co-author of NADA’s Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership.
Kerrigan Advisors’ Founder and Managing Director, Erin Kerrigan, is a recognized expert on dealership valuation, real estate, and buy/sells, and is a frequent speaker at leading auto retail events and conferences, including NADA, JD Power Automotive Roundtable, Automotive News’ Canadian World Congress, AICPA, and NADC. She has also been quoted numerous times by The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Bloomberg and The Economist and has been a keynote speaker for events hosted by American Honda Motor Company, Audi of America, US Trust, Bank of America, Ohio Automobile Dealer Association, and SunTrust Bank. Erin Kerrigan was named by Auto Remarketing as one of the leading women in Automotive in 2020. Kerrigan Advisors’ Managing Director Ryan Kerrigan is also a sought-after industry expert. He is featured in a monthly column for Dealer Magazine and has written Op-Eds for Automotive News.
