AUTOCANADA ACQUIRES NORTH TORONTO AUCTION

EDMONTON, AB, Oct. 4, 2022 /CNW/ – AutoCanada Inc. (“AutoCanada” or the “Company”) (TSX: ACQ), a multi-location North American automobile dealership group, announced that it has acquired North Toronto Auction (“NTA”), a fee-based used vehicle auction business, serving dealers and consumers alike, located in Innisfil, Ontario.

AutoCanada (CNW Group/AutoCanada Inc.)

Operating for over 19 years serving Toronto and surrounding areas, NTA operates a state-of-the-art auction facility and has historically transacted over 5,000 vehicles per year. NTA’s operations provide an in-house, in-person and online auction solution, which may be utilized to facilitate vehicle sales for both AutoCanada’s used and franchise dealerships. Further, NTA has the ability to be utilized as a wholesale engine, balancing and redistributing vehicles inside and outside the AutoCanada network across North America, through a frictionless inventory management and transfer process. Additionally, NTA is also a source of vehicles as its sales team sources auction vehicles from governments, financial institutions, repossession companies, dealerships, rental fleets, and more. Apart from continuing to strengthen AutoCanada’s position in the Canadian used vehicle ecosystem, the acquisition unlocks additional growth opportunities for NTA’s experienced management team to scale the auction business and add other locations across Canada.

“We’re excited to add NTA’s high-quality auction operations and proprietary digital auction software to the Used Digital Retail Division as it has the potential to facilitate wholesale vehicle transactions at scale, both internally, across AutoCanada dealerships, and externally to other dealers,” said Executive Chairman, Paul Antony. “This represents our initial foray into the auction business; however, many of the successful used vehicle operators in the U.S. also own their own auctions as it allows for the vertical integration of inventory management and a reduction in fees paid to auctions. We are pleased to welcome the experienced NTA management team to the AutoCanada family, and we look forward to continuing its legacy into the future.”

NTA generates in excess of $4.5 million in annual revenue and will operate within the Used Digital Retail Division. The transaction will be funded from a drawdown of the Company’s credit facility and is expected to be accretive to 2022 earnings.

AutoCanada is a leading North American multi-location automobile dealership group currently operating 81 franchised dealerships, comprised of 28 brands, in eight provinces in Canada, as well as a group in Illinois, USA. AutoCanada currently sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, FIAT, Alfa Romeo, Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac, Ford, Infiniti, Nissan, Hyundai, Subaru, Audi, Volkswagen, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, MINI, Volvo, Toyota, Lincoln, Acura, Honda and Porsche branded vehicles. Additionally, the Company’s Canadian operations segment currently operates three used vehicle dealerships supporting the Used Digital Retail Division, the RightRide division operates 10 locations, and five stand-alone collision centres (within our group of 21 collision centres). In 2021, our dealerships sold approximately 86,000 vehicles and processed over 800,000 service and collision repair orders in our 1,303 service bays generating revenue in excess of $4 billion.

Additional information about AutoCanada Inc. is available at www.sedar.com and the Company’s website at www.autocan.ca.