Top 100 Retailers Ranked by Used-Vehicle Sales Supplement - S3

WUsed cars were lifeblood of business in '21
ith new vehicles in
short supply, groups
pivoted to meet demand
C.J. Moore
cj.moore@crain.com
W
ith the microchip shortage
and other supply chain hiccups
making new vehicles hard
to come by in 2021, auto retailers
boosted their focus on selling used cars
and trucks as they faced heightened consumer
demand.
Big publicly owned retailers with a hefty
online presence expanded their used-vehicle
sales volumes in 2021, and traditional
dealership groups put their backs into reeling
in more used cars to bolster their inventories.
The resulting sales became a lifeline
for their businesses as they dealt with fewer
new vehicles to offer customers.
Those efforts were reflected in Automotive
News' annual list of the top 100 retailers
ranked by used-vehicle sales. The vast majority
of companies on the list reported gains
in the number of used vehicles they retailed
in 2021.
The top finishers
CarMax Inc. kept its spot as the No. 1
used-vehicle retailer in the nation, with
924,338 sales in its fiscal 2022, which ended
Feb. 28. That reporting period most closely
corresponds to the 2021 calendar year covered
by the list. CarMax's sales rose 23 percent
from 751,862 in its previous fiscal year.
" We're proud to be the nation's largest
buyer and seller of used cars, and it's due to
the hard work of our talented associates and
our relentless focus on providing customers
the best experience in the industry, " CarMax
CEO Bill Nash said in a statement.
Carvana Co. landed at No. 2 for the second
year in a row. The online upstart retailed
425,237 used vehicles last year, up 74 percent
from 2020. Carvana first entered the list with
its 2018 sales, landing at No. 8.
Rounding out the top five were: AutoNation
Inc., holding on to its No. 3 position with
Biggest gainers
Here are the 10 retailers that made the biggest leaps on Automotive News' list of the
top 100 retailers ranked by used-vehicle retail sales.
2021 RANK
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
7
7
7
Shift†
Swickard Auto Group
LaFontaine Automotive Group
Ed Morse Automotive Group
Shottenkirk Automotive Group
Bergstrom Automotive
Kunes Auto Group
Feldman Automotive Group
Keating Auto Group
Del Grande Dealer Group
†Publicly held Source: Automotive News Research & Data Center
retail sales of 304,364 used vehicles; Lithia
Motors Inc., overtaking the No. 4 spot with
275,495 used vehicles sold; and Penske Automotive
Group Inc., slipping one spot to No.
5 with retail sales of 264,520 used vehicles.
Sonic Automotive Inc. kept its No. 6 spot,
and Group 1 Automotive Inc. held at No. 7.
Asbury Automotive Group Inc. rose a spot to
No. 8, with 105,206 used vehicles sold, knocking
Hendrick Automotive Group to No. 9.
Hendrick retailed 100,100 used vehicles
in 2021.
Online used-vehicle retailer
Vroom Inc. broke into the top 10 for
the first time, rising four spots to No.
10 after retailing 80,910 used vehicles
in 2021.
And Shift Technologies Inc., another
online retailer, leaped 56 spots
to No. 33 after more than doubling
the number of vehicles it sold, to
23,251 in 2021. Shift was the largest
upward mover on the list.
Nash: Provide
best experience
Other gainers
Several dealership groups made big jumps
in the ranking as they bolstered their sales in
2021, with car buyers who couldn't obtain
new vehicles turning to used ones.
Swickard Automotive Group, of Gladstone,
Ore., rose 37 spots to No. 48, the second-
largest ascent up the list. The group retailed
17,403 used vehicles in 2021, up 74 percent
from 2020.
Zeroing in on used vehicles provided a " big
boost to the business " and ultimately
punched up the group's bottom line, said
Greg Gates, Swickard's vice president of
business transformation.
As long as uncertainty over new-vehicle
production and availability persists, dealers
will likely keep the focus on selling
and
replenishing
their
critical
used-vehicle inventory, Gates said.
" We're going to continue to focus
on selling used cars and making
sure our guests have something to
drive if that's what they come in
needing, " he said.
LaFontaine Automotive
Group
had the third-largest jump up the
list. The group based in Highland,
Mich., rose 36 spots to No. 40. It retailed
19,573 used vehicles in 2021, up 75
percent from the previous year.
Selling used cars was always a key focus for
LaFontaine, but the coronavirus pandemic
and chip shortage made company leaders
realize used-vehicle sales are the lifeblood of
the dealership business, said Max Muncey,
LaFontaine's senior manager of corporate
communications.
33
48
40
68
38
54
44
47
49
86
2020 RANK
89
85
76
90
56
68
54
57
59
96
CHANGE
56
37
36
22
18
14
10
10
10
10
"
" We're going to continue
to focus on selling used
cars and making sure our
guests have something to
drive if that's what they
come in needing. "
Greg Gates, vice president of business
transformation, Swickard Automotive
Group
In previous years, LaFontaine carried $30
million to $35 million of used-vehicle inventory.
Last year, the group increased that to
well over $100 million, Muncey said.
LaFontaine ramped up its attempts to obtain
used vehicles, and its buying center
team was " extremely aggressive " in seeking
inventory, Muncey said. That included
scouring Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist,
while some employees drove around
looking down driveways for cars marked
with " for sale " signs. LaFontaine implemented
an instant pay option so consumers selling
their cars to the group could get their
money more quickly, Muncey said.
Obtaining vehicles from lease turn-ins also
became very important, he added.
" We probably took for granted the volume
that we sold [on the new-car side] and took
for granted the volume of lease turn-ins that
we normally were getting at our stores, "
Muncey said. a
"
Top 100 Retailers Ranked by Used-Vehicle Sales Supplement

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