EDMONTON,
March 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -
AutoCanada Inc. ("AutoCanada" or the "Company") (TSX: ACQ)
announced today that it has obtained approval from General Motors
of Canada ("GM Canada") to
purchase a 70% non-voting equity interest in Saskatoon Motor
Products Ltd., a Chevrolet dealership located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Mann-Northway Auto
Source Ltd., a Chevrolet GMC Buick Cadillac dealership located in
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.
The purchase of the two dealerships closed upon obtaining approval
from GM Canada.
Based in Saskatoon, Saskatoon Motor Products Ltd. has
been serving Saskatchewan for over
60 years with new and used General Motors vehicles. The
dealership will operate out of a leased facility which includes a
10 car showroom, 32 service bays and 10 body shop bays. In
2013, the dealership retailed 1,162 new vehicles and 1,068 used
vehicles.
Mann-Northway Auto Source Ltd. has also been
serving Saskatchewan for over 60
years and offers a full line of Chevrolet, GMC, Buick and Cadillac branded vehicles to
Prince Albert and the surrounding
region. The dealership will operate out of a leased facility
which includes a 10 car showroom, 16 service bays and 10 body shop
bays. In 2013, the dealership retailed 649 new vehicles and
468 used vehicles.
The two dealerships are currently owned and
operated by Mr. Roger Mann (a third
generation dealer) and his son Mr. Robert
Mann (a fourth generation dealer) and are the oldest family
run General Motors stores in the country. The Mann Family
have been General Motors dealers for 100 years since their first
store was founded by Andrew Mann in
1914.
In accordance with the terms of the ownership
structure for GM dealerships approved by GM Canada, AutoCanada
shall purchase a 70% non-voting equity interest, with Mr.
Pat Priestner, Chief Executive
Officer of AutoCanada, being named Dealer Operator by holding a 15%
personal equity interest and voting control of the
dealership. Mr. Robert Mann
will be named Dealer Owner and will retain a 15% equity interest in
the two dealerships and will continue to operate the
dealerships. The transaction was reviewed and approved by
AutoCanada's independent members of its Board of Directors.
AutoCanada will purchase its 70% equity interest in the two
dealerships through stock consideration of 205,000 shares and the
remainder to be paid in cash. The listing of the shares has
received conditional approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange
("TSX").
Commenting on the transaction, Pat Priestner, Chairman and CEO of AutoCanada
stated, "We are very pleased and honoured that the Mann family has
agreed to join the AutoCanada family through these two very
established, high quality and exceptionally well run General Motors
stores, each with storied histories in the Province. In addition to
closing this exceptional group of dealerships, we are likewise
excited to be entering the great province of Saskatchewan which we believe is a very good
market for auto retail, and we welcome both Mr. Roger Mann and Mr. Robert Mann to our group and look forward to a
long and rewarding relationship."
About AutoCanada
AutoCanada is one of Canada's largest multi-location automobile
dealership groups, currently operating 34 franchised dealerships in
seven provinces and has over 1,500 employees. AutoCanada currently
sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, FIAT, Chevrolet, GMC,
Buick, Cadillac, Infiniti, Nissan,
Hyundai, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Audi, and Volkswagen branded vehicles.
In 2012, our dealerships sold approximately 30,000 vehicles and
processed approximately 309,000 service and collision repair orders
in our 333 service bays during that time.
Additional information about AutoCanada Inc. is
available at www.sedar.com and the Company's website at
www.autocan.ca.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this press
release are forward-looking statements and information
(collectively "forward-looking statements"), within the meaning of
the applicable Canadian securities legislation. We hereby
provide cautionary statements identifying important factors that
could cause our actual results to differ materially from those
projected in these forward-looking statements. Any statements
that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs,
plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are
not historical facts and are forward-looking and may involve
estimates and assumptions and are subject to risks, uncertainties
and other factors some of which are beyond our control and
difficult to predict. Accordingly, these factors could cause
actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those
expressed in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, any
such forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by
reference to the factors discussed throughout this release and as
contained in the Company's Annual Information Form dated
March 26, 2013 which is accessible
through the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.
SOURCE AutoCanada Inc.