An automotive giant on the Rochester, New York, dealership scene has purchased all nine locations from a competing giant after 74 years in business.
Bob Johnson Auto Group has purchased all Dorschel Automotive Group locations on West Henrietta Road in Rochester.
"After 74 years on the Rochester automotive scene, the Dorschel family is exiting the car business, having sold our company and facilities to the Bob Johnson Auto Group," Rick Dorschel told 13 WHAM. "It is with deep gratitude that the Dorschel family thanks all of our staff (past and present), customers, vendors and the Rochester community at large for their loyalty, consideration, support and friendship for three-quarters of a century. We have been blessed to have had the opportunity to partner with and serve you and we thank you, very, very much."
This acquisition includes several luxury brands, including Lexus and Maserati, and “further cements the Bob Johnson Auto Group's position as one of the largest family-owned dealership groups in the U.S," according to a news release from the Bob Johnson Auto Group. The dealership sale also includes Toyota, Nissan and Kia brands.
The Bob Johnson Auto Group now has 17 locations, most of which are within the Rochester region. Earlier this year, the company also purchased Patrick Buick GMC in Henrietta.
The Bob Johnson Auto Group retained all of the Dorschel employees and currently employs more than 1,200 people. John Love and Greg Stahl own the Bob Johnson Auto Group, which consistently finds itself on the annual Greater Rochester Chamber Top 100 list. The list ranks Rochester's fastest-growing companies, and Bob Johnson was ranked No. 36 in 2017.
The Dorschel Group was founded in the mid-1940s by John Dorschel, who opened a Hudson dealership in downtown Rochester. The company quickly expanded to Studebaker, and by 1952 it opened a Buick dealership on Genessee Street. Adding brands, the company moved to West Henrietta Road in Rochester in 1967. The Bob Johnson Auto Group was founded in 1981.
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