Welcome to 2019! We look forward to working with you all as readers and contributors this year, and to seeing many of you later this month in San Francisco.
Dealerships are complex business operations. That we all know. So, buying or selling a dealership – not to mention a dealership group – should be an extremely complicated undertaking. Though I do talk with a few dealers who did the deal themselves with a long-time acquaintance and the like, in general I think that is probably not the best approach.
Even if you know the buyer, how well do you really know your dealership as a business entity? Many of the contributors to Automotive Buy Sell Report are folks who can help you truly determine the best value and the best buyer for your dealership(s).
When you are buying a dealership, a whole separate group of issues comes into play. This week, we welcome a new contributor, Chris Saraceno of the Kelly Automotive Group, who provides a very handy checklist for buyers to consult when bringing an acquisition onboard. As he writes, it is far from a complete checklist and every buy sell is unique. But it is a nice starting point.
Our second piece this week addresses the sell side. It is part three of the “Selling your Dealership” series from Crowe. It offers a useful list of matters to consider including the types of marketing materials to gather for “the Book” and tips on the traits of a qualified buyer.
Enjoy!