John Betagole, president of Superior Auto Group, said his company — which has operated continuously in Cincinnati since 1928 — will consider opportunities to purchase other dealerships in the Dayton area “as they arise.”
“We would prefer to find opportunities within a couple hours driving distance from our base operations in Cincinnati, which encompasses several major metropolitan areas including Dayton,” Betagole said in an email.
With the addition of the Acura store in Centerville and the Hyundai store in Beavercreek, the Superior group now operates seven franchise dealerships in Cincinnati and Dayton. Its Cincinnati-area holdings include two Hyundai stores, along with Acura, Honda and Kia dealerships.
Superior also manages a large used vehicle operation called Mike Albert Direct which is part of Mike Albert Fleet Solutions, a national fleet leasing and fleet management company based in Evendale in suburban Cincinnati.
Betagole said the Dayton-area market “looked particularly attractive to us” because of its proximity to Cincinnati.
Hidy co-owner Joe Hidy said last month when he announced the dealership transactions that the Betagole family — which opened the first Hyundai dealership in the state in the late 1980s — was “a good fit” for Hidy’s Hyundai and Acura dealerships. Betagole agreed.
“The fact that we already have experience with these manufacturers also was a positive influence,” Betagole said. “By dispatching a few key associates from our Cincinnati stores to the new acquisitions, we feel we will bring them quickly into the fold.”
Betagole said he couldn’t yet predict whether employment at the new Superior-owned dealerships would expand. “As we have only recently taken over these dealerships, we are still in the process of assessing and establishing appropriate staffing,” he said.
Germain Motor Co., which is poised to take over the Hidy Honda and Ford dealerships along U.S. 35 in Beavercreek, has a larger geographic footprint than Superior, operating nine dealerships in the Columbus area; four in Ann Arbor, Michigan; two in Naples, Florida; and one in Sarasota.
John Malishenko, chief operating officer for Germain Motor Co., said the purchases of the two Beavercreek dealerships are on track, and the transactions are expected to be complete by Feb. 1.
Noting that he is a Dayton-area native — he was born at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and grew up in Fairborn — Malishenko said entering the Dayton market “is a great opportunity. This is a great market, and we can’t wait to get started.”
Joe Hidy said he approached Steve Germain about buying Hidy’s Honda and Ford dealerships because of Germain’s strong reputation in the industry.
Malishenko praised the two Hidy dealerships. “It’s a solid operation, and these are well-run stores,” he said. “We’ll build on what Joe has created.”
That will likely include hiring.
“We don’t acquire anything that doesn’t have the opportunity for growth,” Malishenko said. “I would expect we’ll grow the staff during the first 12 months.”
The buyouts of Hidy’s dealerships are part of an accelerating pattern of such mergers across the industry, and Ohio Automobile Dealers Association President Tim Doran has said the trend will continue, as dealership owners look to take advantage of economies of scale.
The Hidy family of dealerships started with a Honda dealership in Xenia in 1975. The Ford, Acura and Hyundai dealerships were added within the last 10 years. Terms of the sale and the sale agreements were not disclosed.
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