Illinois Dealership Traded

A Chicago-area auto dealership in its second generation of family ownership recently sold to an Indiana auto group.

Arlington Toyota in the suburb of Palatine opened in 1983. Founder Tony Vicari 4and his children and fellow store operators Scott, Gary and Tracey decided to retire from the business.

Sell-side firm Kerrigan Advisors brokered the sale for the Vicaris. It said the dealership has among the highest-volume sales of Chicago-area Toyota stores. It sits on 13 acres with 800 feet of freeway frontage for optimal visibility.

It’s Indianapolis-based Andy Mohr Automotive Group’s first acquisition outside its home state, where it has a dozen stores among 13 brands, including one Toyota dealership. The group’s namesake founded it in 1992, and it now looks to grow it Toyota footprint in the Midwest, Kerrigan said.

“Our family has deep roots in this community, so it was very important to us that our dealership be in good hands with a new owner,” Gary Vicari said of the sale. “We found that in Andy Mohr, another family-owned dealer group that shares similar values to us.”

Toyota, the world’s top automaker in sales, has also drawn the most demand for franchises, said Kerrigan, whose recent dealer survey found 92% of its dealers expect their franchise values to either be flat or increase next year, the highest percentage among all brands for seven straight years.

“With the lowest inventory days’ supply and highest units in operation per franchise among all OEMs, Toyota ranks as the most valuable nonluxury franchise in the industry,” the firm said.

Toyota is Chicago’s second-ranked in vehicle sales at about 88% above the national average, according to Kerrigan. 

“With just 1,235 Toyota dealerships in the U.S. and an increasingly consolidated dealer body, opportunities to expand with Toyota in a major metro are rare,” said firm founder and Managing Director Erin Kerrigan.