Automotive sell-side advisory firm Kerrigan Advisors announced it has added former AutoNation executive Chris Gempton as senior vice president of sell-side advisory.
The new SVP will open Kerrigan Advisors’ new Florida office in Miami, which will serve clients in the Southeast, a market the company said is very active for dealership buy/sell transactions.
Kerrigan Advisors founder and managing director Erin Kerrigan said the addition of Gempton and the new office is “further expanding our presence in Florida, an area that continues to capture record valuation as referenced in our Q1 2024 Blue Sky Report” and noting that the team now boasts a “collective transaction experience” of $12 billion.
Gempton comes to the firm after 13 years with AutoNation, most recently leading the company’s acquisitions and divestitures as vice president of corporate development. During his tenure, he oversaw nearly $3 billion in transactions involving more than 130 dealerships, representing more than $5 billion in revenue.
Gempton began his career as a CPA serving the auto retail industry for MBAF and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
“Working with Kerrigan Advisors during my time at AutoNation was always a stellar experience,” Gempton said. “Recognized as industry experts and known industry-wide for its tremendous track record and Blue Sky Report, the firm has always stood out for its professionalism, attention to detail and exceptional client service.”
Kerrigan Advisors is the leading sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide. Since its founding in 2014, the firm has led the industry with the sale of over 280 dealerships representing $9 billion in client proceeds, including the third largest transaction in auto retail history – the sale of Jim Koons Automotive Companies to Asbury Automotive Group. The firm advises the industry’s leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, Kerrigan Advisors does not take listings, rather they develop a customized sales approach for each client to achieve their personal and financial goals. In addition to the firm’s sell-side advisory services, Kerrigan Advisors also provides a suite of consulting and investor services including growth strategy, market valuation assessments, capital allocation, transactional due diligence, open point proposals, operational improvement and real estate due diligence.
Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors’ signature blue sky charts, multiples, and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. To download a preview of the report, click here. The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the US market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail. To access The Kerrigan Index™, click here. To read the 2023 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here. To read the 2024 Kerrigan OEM Survey, click here. Kerrigan Advisors also is the co-author of NADA’s Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership.
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