Anderson Automotive buys 7 South Carolina car dealerships

Fast-growing Anderson Automotive Group completed its second multi-dealership acquisition in South Carolina this year with a seven-store purchase Monday.

Anderson Automotive, of Raleigh, N.C., bought Toyota of Greer, Hyundai of Greer, Genesis of Greer, Nissan of Greer, Kia of Greer, Kia of Greenville and Mike Hovart Chevrolet in Easley, from Mark Escude, president of MCE Automotive Inc., according to Michael Anderson, the group's CEO. Escude still owns one dealership, Terry Lambert Hyundai in North Augusta, S.C.

The stores were renamed Fred Anderson Toyota of Greer, Fred Anderson Hyundai of Greer, Fred Anderson Nissan of Greer, Fred Anderson Kia of Greer, Fred Anderson Kia of Greenville and Fred Anderson Chevrolet of Easley. The Genesis store's name remains. Fred Anderson, Michael's father, is the group's chairman.

Hyundai and Genesis are new brands for the group, Anderson, a 2017 Automotive News 40 Under 40 honoree, noted. Genesis of Greer was one of the luxury automaker's first standalone dealerships, having opened last year.

Greenville, Greer and Easley are west of Spartanburg and are part of South Carolina's upstate region.

"It was just an opportunity for us to basically double down in the market and have a bigger presence," Michael Anderson told Automotive News.

In a January acquisition, Anderson Automotive bought four dealerships in Greenville and one in Greer.

Anderson Automotive has since sold two of those dealerships, Michael Anderson said. The group on July 24 sold Fred Anderson Mazda in Greenville and Fred Anderson Infiniti of Greenville to Mills Automotive Group, he said.

Those dealerships were renamed Mazda of Greenville and Infiniti of Greenville, according to Mills Automotive's website. Mills Automotive has been an active buyer in 2023 with dealership purchases also in Virginia, Louisiana and North Carolina.

"After all the puts and takes, the buys and sells, we're gonna end up with 10 stores in this one market," Anderson said of upstate South Carolina.

Anderson Automotive ranks No. 71 on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the U.S., retailing 12,647 new vehicles in 2022.

Kerrigan Advisors, a sell-side firm in Incline Village, Nev., represented Escude in the August transaction, Anderson said.