One other factor affecting Bill Heard, which has a car sales history dating back to 1919, is similar to that associated with housing sales lately: bad loans. The company reportedly had its credit cut by GMAC this summer, during which time its financial condition began to slip, according to industry observers.
A telephone message left by GlobeSt.com with a receptionist at Bill Heard's Columbus headquarters was not returned Thursday. Uncertain at this point is whether another auto dealer will take over Bill Heard's properties or if they will be put up for sale. Those properties include five dealerships in Georgia; two each in Florida, Texas and Nevada; and one each in Alabama and Tennessee.
Earlier this week, GlobeSt.com reportedthat Bill Heard sold 31 acres at a site along Interstate 85 in Atlanta for $15.3 million, or roughly $500,000 per acre. BrandsMart USA plans to build a store on the site.
Before its troubles began this summer, Bill Heard had been one of the Southeast's best-known names for auto sales. In 2004 it invested $30 million in a huge dealership on 40 acres along Interstate 4 in Plant City, FL, just east of Tampa.
The company's mission statement, listed on its Web site, states that it wanted "to be the dominant dealer in every market we serve." It adds: "(W)e are a dynamic, world-famous auto megadealer, with a corporate culture of focused, high-performance people, that exceeds its expectations of sales and profit by exceeding the expectations of its employees and customers."
However, its self-promoted image had blemishes. Late last year, state officials in Florida hit the company with $400,000 in penalties as part of a settlement in an investigation into numerous claims of deceptive trade practices at its Plant City and Sanford dealerships, according to published reports.
Bill Heard is currently ranked as the nation's 13th-largest auto dealer group by Automotive News, based on 2007 revenue of at least $2.1 billion. It has also been identified as the world's leading seller of Chevrolet vehicles.
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