Michael Croxon
Why would Michael Croxon sell a majority interest in a car dealership business that has been part of his family for almost 60 years and is an integral part of the Greater Toronto Area to a B.C.-based dealership group?
Following the news this week that Croxon, President and CEO of Ontario-based NewRoads Automotive Group, had sold a majority interest to B.C.-based OpenRoad Auto Group, Canadian auto dealer contacted him to explain the move.
In a media release issued by OpenRoad about the transaction, Croxon said he had been approached by other dealership groups in recent years about selling his business. He explained to Canadian auto dealer what made him decide on this offer, under which he will remain as President of the company’s eight dealerships. OpenRoad is headed by CEO Christian Chia, who started the group in 2000.
Christian Chia
OpenRoad now has 12 dealerships in Ontario, including OpenRoad Honda Brampton, Brampton East Toyota, ToyotaTown London, and Lexus of London — stores it held prior to the merger. OpenRoad is B.C.’s largest automotive dealership group, with 44 locations, including 37 dealerships representing 25 brands. It also operates seven collision centres.
Earlier this year, the group announced a new division, OpenShine, a car wash business with four Ontario locations operating under the banner of Tommy’s Express Car Wash, a U.S.-based company. The first of the four OpenShine franchises opened in October in Brampton, with St. Thomas, Waterloo, and London to follow.
“Having spoken to many of the major groups in Canada, I determined that the values of OpenRoad were most closely aligned with those of our group,” said Croxon, who is the new Chair of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association. “Having built a small dealer group over the past few decades, it had become apparent to me that I either needed to get bigger or find a partner. With a diminishing appetite for continued growth, Christian and OpenRoad provided a structure that enables me to continue to work in the business I love by overseeing both OpenRoad’s and NewRoads’ Ontario rooftops, while ensuring my group and its associates are in the best hands long term.”
The Croxon family has been a major part of Ontario’s automotive retail industry. Michael’s late father, Noel, and two partners bought North York Chevrolet Oldsmobile in 1968 and quickly established it as one of Canada’s leading General Motors dealerships.
Noel later partnered with Roy Foss to open Canada’s first auto centre in 1982. While North York Chev no longer exists, having been sold to the Foss Group in 2010, it served as the foundation for what became NewRoads Automotive Group. At one point, it included Open Road BMW, a name coincidentally licensed from Chia in 2002.
Michael Croxon entered the family business full time in 1987 and assumed the Dealer Operator role in 1993. He told Canadian auto dealer that the sale of North York Chev facilitated the evolution of NewRoads in the Newmarket–Aurora area. With BMW and Kia already established in that market, the GM team moved north and launched NewRoads GM in 2010. This was followed by Mazda, Subaru (which supplanted Kia), Chrysler, Aurora and Newmarket Toyota, and finally Honda in 2019.
Croxon credited his growth and success in large part to an engaged team of 450 associates, all of whom are moving forward with the new OpenRoad Ontario. He added that the NewRoads brand, which has become synonymous with car buying in what Croxon refers to as the “northern 905,” will remain intact.
“NewRoads has built an outstanding reputation in Ontario’s York Region and beyond, with a culture of service and community values that align with ours at OpenRoad,” said Chia in the release. “By combining our operations, we are strengthening our presence in Ontario and enhancing our ability to serve customers across multiple brands, including Toyota, Mazda, Honda, and Subaru—brands that are core to OpenRoad—and iconic brands from General Motors of Canada and Stellantis that are new to our group. We are excited to welcome Michael and the entire NewRoads team into the OpenRoad family.”
The transaction was funded by a syndicate of banks led by BMO and including Scotiabank, CIBC, and Desjardins as OpenRoad Auto’s strategic financing partners. The deal was facilitated by Samir Akhavan of dealership brokerage Templeton Marsh.
Templeton Marsh recently brokered the deal in which Australia’s largest dealership group, Eagers Automotive, acquired a majority interest in CanadaOne Auto for a reported $953 million. The firm also represented OpenRoad in its acquisition of three stores in B.C.
Terms of the OpenRoad–NewRoads deal were not disclosed.
