Sonic Automotive buys Dub Richardson Toyota

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Feb 26, 2003 by Janice Francis-Smith

Dub Richardson Toyota has been purchased by Sonic Automotive, one of the largest automotive retailers in the country.

The dealership at 5700 Northwest Expressway in Oklahoma City will continue to be known as Dub Richardson Toyota and the staff will not change, according to General Manager Brad Richardson, third- generation car dealer in the Richardson family.

Dub Richardson Auto Group South, located at 801 W. I-240 Service Road in south Oklahoma City, is still owned by the family and operated by Brad's father, Jerry Richardson.

Sonic Automotive, based in Charlotte, N.C., operates more than 185 franchises and 44 collision repair centers in 15 states, including Oklahoma, Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

Sonic Automotive already owns Steve Bailey Honda and City Chevrolet in the Oklahoma City area, as well as a number of dealerships in Tulsa. About eight dealerships in the state are owned by the company.

"It's a competitive market out there," Richardson said. "We'll benefit from implementing Sonic's best practices - it's a more efficient way to run a dealership." Sonic provides extensive resources to its dealerships regarding accounting, human resources, financing and insurance, service, body shop and consultation services, Richardson said.

Customers will continue to see the same level of service as before, Richardson said.

"Customer satisfaction is our number one priority at Dub Richardson Toyota," he said. "We are excited to offer customers in our area the best selection of Toyota cars, trucks and SUVs, and a superior service facility to take care of their ongoing automotive needs."

Though the amount of the sale was not disclosed, the dealership had a newly renovated facility and more than 300 new and used Toyotas to offer.

Plans are already under way to build a new facility within two years, Richardson said.

Steve Bailey Honda has prospered under Sonic's ownership, breaking ground last fall on a 40,000-square-foot facility with parking space for more than 500 vehicles. The dealership plans to relocate from its current facility, at 7722 NW 39th Expressway in Bethany, to the new facility at 8700 Northwest Expressway by early summer.

According to Mark Iuppenlatz, Sonic's senior vice president of corporate development, the company chooses new acquisitions based on a number of factors, including market potential, brand and location.

"Oklahoma is a great place to be in the car business," Iuppenlatz said. Further expansion in Oklahoma is likely, he said, since Sonic concentrates on increasing its presence in its existing markets rather than expansion into other states.

In September, Sonic announced that it had acquired four dealerships in Atlanta, Tulsa, Denver and Columbia, S.C., which had combined annual revenue of $200 million.

Sonic Automotive was incorporated in February 1997, with 10 stores and six collision centers in four states. Dealership operations are overseen by regional, senior regional or divisional vice presidents for a particular geographic area, who use computer-based information systems to monitor each dealership's sales, profitability, inventory and other financial and operating data.

According to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, for the nine months that ended Sept. 30, 2002, Sonic Automotive's revenues rose 23 percent from the previous year to $5.4 billion, and net income from continuing operations rose 47 percent to $86.4 million. Revenues in 2001 totaled $6.3 billion.

During the nine months that ended Sept. 30, the company acquired 30 dealerships for a combined purchase price of $203.2 million in cash and 1,470,588 shares of Class A common stock valued at $38 million.