Three dealership groups expanded in three first-quarter transactions, while an auto retailer and partner added a pair of stores in a third-quarter 2022 deal.
Here's a look at the transactions involving domestic and import dealerships in Massachusetts, Virginia, Wisconsin and Indiana.
Village Automotive adds Stellantis dealership
Ray Ciccolo, the 85-year-old president of Village Automotive Group, continues to grow his Boston-area enterprise, most recently with the February acquisition of Brigham-Gill Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram in Natick, Mass.
He plans to pursue more dealership purchases in the months ahead despite a competitive market.
"We're continuing to talk to people," Ciccolo told Automotive News. "So many people are also trying to acquire dealerships."
Ciccolo bought the Stellantis store on Feb. 14 with Village Automotive COO and son-in-law Anthony Bartolotti. The sale allowed Brigham-Gill owner Richard Gill to retire, according to Carrie Forbes, vice president of Nancy Phillips Associates, an Exeter, N.H., buy-sell firm that represented Gill in the transaction.
The store will keep its name with slight tweaks: Brigham-Gill Village Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram. Natick is west of Boston.
Village Automotive Group in 2021 bought Moore GMC Truck in Danvers, Mass., north of Boston.
Gill's father, Joseph, opened his store in 1966, and Richard Gill began working there while in high school, according to Nancy Phillips Associates.
Village Automotive was formed in the early 1960s, starting with Ciccolo's purchase of a Rambler-Volvo dealership in Boston after walking in, initially, to buy a used car.
Both dealership owners knew of each other for a long time, Forbes said.
The deal injects high-volume domestic brands into Village Automotive's mix of mostly import dealerships, Nancy Phillips Associates said.
One factor behind the acquisition was personal: Ciccolo said he used to be a Jeep dealer years ago and missed that experience.
"I always wanted to get back into the Jeep business, and [this acquisition] offered me the chance," Ciccolo said.
Brigham-Gill was a single dealership, situated on 2.3 acres, with 62 employees, according to Forbes. Village Automotive, by contrast, has more than 500 employees.
Carver adds domestic stores
Jarryd Carver, president of Winners Circle Automotive Group, has again expanded his dealership portfolio, with January acquisitions of Stellantis and General Motors dealerships.
Carver on Jan. 31 bought Franklin Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram and Franklin Chevrolet-Buick-GMC in Virginia from Sean Earley, according to Stacy Pauley, operations manager for the Winners Circle group.
The dealerships were renamed Winners Circle Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram and Winners Circle Chevrolet-Buick-GMC. Franklin is in southern Virginia, near the North Carolina border.
The acquisition follows Carver's October purchase of a Hampton, Va., Mitsubishi store. He was an Automotive News' 40 Under 40 honoree in 2018.
Winners Circle also includes Stellantis and Nissan dealerships in Hampton and a Mazda store in Newport News, Va.