12 Tampa Bay Area Dealerships to adopt the AutoNation USA Brand;
Effort Builds on Success in Denver
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- AutoNation, Inc.
(NYSE: AN), America's leading automotive retailer, today announced that it has
selected the Tampa Bay area of Florida as the next market where its franchised
dealerships will co-brand under a common name and the "AutoNation USA" brand
to sell new and used vehicles in a no-haggle, one-low-price shopping
environment.
The Company said that, beginning December 26, 12 of its dealerships in the
Tampa Bay area would offer many of the sales and service features that
generated exceptionally strong market-share and sales gains throughout the
year in Denver. Denver is the first market where AutoNation implemented a
common brand name and a no-haggle sales approach in its new vehicle
franchises.
The switch to low, no-haggle pricing and the use of the AutoNation USA co-
brand for most of its Tampa Bay area stores will involve more than 2,000
AutoNation associates in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater. In addition to
the no-haggle sales approach, these associates will be trained over the next
60 days in offering "Fast or Free" vehicle service; full-disclosure, menu-
pricing on finance products; a 3-day money-back guarantee on new and used
vehicles, and a 99-day warranty on quality certified used vehicles.
Similar offerings in Denver helped the Company's 17 "John Elway AutoNation
USA" dealerships score dramatic increases in same-store new vehicle sales,
customer satisfaction scores and market share. The Denver dealerships finished
the third quarter with a 27 percent share of the city's entire new car and
light truck market -- an increase of more than 40 percent since the Denver
stores adopted no-haggle pricing earlier this year.
The no-haggle sales philosophy has also brought profits. AutoNation's
Denver dealerships saw third-quarter vehicle gross profit increase 22 percent
from a year ago. Net profit margins in Denver in the third quarter exceeded
the National Automobile Dealers Association industry average and are
comparable to those the dealerships had before switching to low, no-haggle
pricing.
"This solid third-quarter performance from our Denver stores gives us
tremendous confidence in the business model we have chosen for defining the
AutoNation USA brand," said Mike Jackson, AutoNation's Chief Executive
Officer. "Now, it is time to replicate our 'Mile High' success in Tampa."
Added Michael E. Maroone, AutoNation's President and Chief Operating
Officer, "We will succeed in Tampa, as we did in Denver, by making an upfront
investment in associate training to ensure our dealerships are ready to
deliver the automotive buying and ownership experience consumers have been
demanding."
AutoNation, Inc. is the world's largest automotive retailer on and off the
web, with 406 new vehicle franchises in 20 states, 41 AutoNation USA used
vehicle megastores and an industry-leading web site, AutoNationDirect.com. A
Fortune 100 company, AutoNation's vehicle rental businesses include Alamo
Rent-A-Car, Inc., National Car Rental System, Inc. and CarTemps USA, which
collectively have operations nationwide and in more than 65 countries. The
Company has announced plans to spin off those rental businesses next year in a
tax-free share distribution to AutoNation shareholders.
Certain statement and information incurred in this release constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Federal Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may
cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be
materially different from any future results, performances, or achievements
expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Additional discussion
of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
management's projections, forecasts, estimates and expectations is contained
in the Company's SEC filings.
SOURCE AutoNation, Inc.