EDMONTON,
March 31, 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 an 80% non-voting equity interest in the assets of
McNaught Cadillac Buick GMC ("McNaught"), a Cadillac Buick GMC
dealership located in Winnipeg,
Manitoba. The acquisition is expected to close April 1, 2014.
McNaught Cadillac Buick GMC was founded by Mr.
Gord McNaught Sr. nearly four decades ago and is currently operated
by his two sons, Mr. Gord McNaught Jr. and Mr. Andrew McNaught, who will continue to operate
the dealership from its current leased facility which includes a 10
car showroom, 24 service bays and 10 body shop bays. As part
of the purchase agreement terms, AutoCanada will purchase the
dealership facility on or before March 31,
2016. In 2013, the dealership retailed 593 new
vehicles and 520 used vehicles.
In accordance with the terms of the previously
announced ownership structure for GM dealerships approved by GM
Canada, AutoCanada shall purchase an 80% non-voting equity
interest. Mr. Pat Priestner, Chief
Executive Officer of AutoCanada, shall be named Dealer Operator,
and, together with other senior managers, shall purchase a 20%
equity interest, with Mr. Priestner holding 100% voting control of
the dealership. The transaction was reviewed and approved by
AutoCanada's independent members of its Board of
Directors.
Commenting on the transaction, Pat Priestner, Chairman and CEO of AutoCanada
stated, "We are very excited to add a fourth dealership to our
Winnipeg platform, a market which
has proven to be very good for auto retail. A new brand for us in
Winnipeg and an additional
dealership allows us to continue to build scale in the city.
We would like to thank General Motors of Canada for its continued support of our
efforts to expand our offerings of these highly desirable brands
which we believe will continue to grow in market share. We
would also like to welcome the McNaught family, and all of the
McNaught dealership employees, to the AutoCanada family, with whom
we look forward to building a strong and lasting 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 1,600 employees. AutoCanada currently
sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat, Chevrolet, GMC,
Buick, Cadillac, Infiniti, Nissan,
Hyundai, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Audi, and Volkswagen branded vehicles.
In 2013, our dealerships sold approximately 36,000 vehicles and
processed approximately 364,000 service and collision repair orders
in our 381 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 20, 2014 which is accessible
through the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.
SOURCE AutoCanada Inc.