Umansky Automotive buys last of Qvale's California dealerships

Fast-growing Umansky Automotive Group of Memphis, Tenn., has entered California with the acquisition of five dealerships representing six brands in the San Francisco Bay area.

Umansky Automotive bought Porsche Livermore, Jaguar-Land Rover Livermore, Audi Livermore, Livermore Honda and Livermore Subaru, all in Livermore, Calif., on Wednesday from Qvale Automotive Group. Livermore is southeast of San Francisco.

"This strategic acquisition of strong brands and significant volume is the ideal way for us to enter the California market," Dan Umansky, owner of Umansky Automotive Group, said in a statement.

Umansky Automotive was founded in 2013 with one dealership, Acura of Memphis. The group quickly expanded to Mississippi, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Virginia. It now has 1,300 employees at 25 locations.

Its stores also represent the Alfa Romeo, BMW, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Lincoln, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Toyota, Volkswagen, Hyundai and Genesis brands.

"We grow our talent from within," Umansky told Automotive News. "We have a lot of people on our bench. We're definitely in the expansion mode."

The group has long sought dealerships in California, Umansky said. The state remains a place of interest for acquisitions, he said, while  noting that Umansky Automotive will look anywhere in the country for expansion.

"We're looking for premier brands, just kind of like this acquisition," Umansky said.

While Umansky Automotive has just entered California, Qvale Automotive has exited the Golden State.

"This transaction, while bittersweet, marks the sale of our family's remaining dealerships in California as we consolidate and focus our efforts on our Florida dealerships," said Bruce Qvale, president of Qvale Automotive, in a statement.

In March, Qvale Automotive sold Jaguar-Land Rover Stevens Creek in San Jose, Calif., to US Auto Trust, a private dealership group owned by Edward Glazer of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Last year, Qvale sold three California dealerships to Swickard Auto Group.

Qvale now has four dealerships in Florida: Audi Coral Springs, Audi Fort Lauderdale, Audi Lakeland and Volkswagen Brandon.

The Qvale family has a long and unique history in the automotive industry thanks to family patriarch Kjell Qvale.

Qvale, who died in 2013, started importing the MG-TC roadster from England, helping to launch the U.S. import auto business that became British Motor Car Distributors Ltd. in 1947. He became the Volkswagen importer for Northern California in 1953 and helped establish Porsche, Audi, Jaguar and Land Rover in the U.S.

Qvale also built cars: the Lotus-powered Jensen-Healey roadster in the 1970s and the Qvale Mangusta sports car in the late 1990s.

Presidio Group, an investment banking and dealership advisory company, represented Qvale in the Livermore transaction. Umansky Automotive did not use a broker.