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Booms, Busts, and Big Sales: Top Trends Steering Today’s Dealership Buy/Sells | Alan Haig, President of Haig Partners

Car Dealership Guy Podcast Aug 21, 2025 54 min

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About this episode

Alan Haig, president of Haig Partners, returns to discuss the current state of dealership mergers and acquisitions amidst a fluctuating market. The conversation covers the challenges faced by brands like Nissan and Stellantis, the impact of tariffs on dealership evaluations, and the contrasting strategies of public versus private dealership groups. Haig highlights the importance of dealership profitability, the effects of consumer behavior on sales, and the ongoing evolution of the automotive retail landscape, including the rise of companies like Carvana. Insights into future trends and the potential for recovery in struggling brands are also explored.

Topics: dealership mergers market trends tariffs impact brand performance private vs public acquisitions Nissan struggles Stellantis evaluation Carvana strategies dealership profitability consumer behavior

Cars: Chevrolet Corvette Chevrolet Malibu Chevrolet Silverado EV Ford F-150 Lightning Infiniti QX80 Jeep Wrangler Porsche 911 Porsche Taycan

Today I’m joined by Alan Haig, President of Haig Partners. We dig into why Stellantis and Nissan are still searching for the bottom, which states are commanding the highest blue sky multiples, the drivers behind Carvana’s first brick-and-mortar win and more. This episode is brought to you by: 1. Lotlinx - Get the best possible market advantage on every vehicle transaction. Optimize operations and boost profits using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Learn more @ https://lotlinx.com 2. BizzyCar – CDG’s Recall Tracker powered by BizzyCar monitors 70M+ vehicles with open recalls, packed with insights: timelines, fix status, campaign numbers—everything you need to bring lost customers back. Transform your recall management today @ http://www.cdgrecalls.com 3. CDG Recruiting – Hire top dealership talent, fast. From sales managers to GMs and C-suite execs, we’ve placed over 1,000 roles across auto retail. Ready to scale without the hassle? Visit https://www.cdgrecruiting.com to get started. Make a donation to support Alan's NYC Marathon run and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center here: https://secure2.convio.net/mskcc/site/TR/FredsTeam/FredsTeam?px=2806962&pg=personal&fr_id=4272 Check out Car Dealership Guy’s stuff: For dealers: Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠ Dealership recruiting ➤ ⁠⁠http://www.cdgrecruiting.com⁠⁠ Fix your dealership’s social media ➤ ⁠⁠http://www.trynomad.co⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠ For industry vendors: Advertise with Car Dealership Guy ➤ ⁠⁠http://www.cdgpartner.com⁠⁠ Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠ Topics: 03:19 Current dealership M&A market outlook? 05:48 Regional market differences? (CA/TX/FL) 11:27 How tariffs impact valuations? 19:40 Will Carvana's new car experiment work? 25:16 Carvana's inventory innovation? 27:36 Public vs private acquisitions? 32:04 Underperforming brand opportunities? 37:12 EVs' impact on dealership values? 41:41 Best consolidation strategies? Car Dealership Guy Socials: X ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠x.com/GuyDealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/cardealershipguy/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tiktok.com/@guydealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/company/cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Threads ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠threads.net/@cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077402857683⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Everything else ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Technical Too Afraid to Ask

Alexander Migl (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Porsche Taycan

"...shift their production mix. Maybe they make fewer Taycans and more 911s. So they want more."

David Villarreal Fernández (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Car

Porsche 911

"...ction mix. Maybe they make fewer Taycans and more 911s. So they want more."

Dinkun Chen (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Jeep Wrangler

"...ard of Carvana and I was looking at buying a Jeep Wrangler for this vacation house we have here in Massachus..."

Dinkun Chen (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Infiniti QX80

"...I know Nissan, they just announced their revamped QX80, which seems to be an exciting move for them."

Kevauto (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Chevrolet Malibu

"...ars left at Chevrolet. They have a Corvette and a Malibu, I think that might be it. So they're so heavy on..."

Matti Blume (CC BY-SA)

Car

Chevrolet Corvette

"or two cars left at Chevrolet. They have a Corvette and a Malibu, I think that might be it. So they'r..."

UltraTech66 (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Chevrolet Silverado EV

"has been on the full-size truck side. The Silverado EVs and the Ford Lightnings, the actual sales of thos..."

UltraTech66 (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Car

Ford Lightnings

"...l-size truck side. The Silverado EVs and the Ford Lightnings, the actual sales of those units have been far le..."

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8 cars featured

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