CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH), a Fortune 500 Company and one of the nation’s largest automotive retailers, today announced it has purchased approximately four acres of land directly adjacent to the Company’s Charlotte, North Carolina, EchoPark retail hub location. The expanded property will accommodate approximately 400 additional inventory parking spaces, bringing the total inventory capacity at the Charlotte EchoPark retail hub location to approximately 1,000 vehicles.
David Smith, Sonic Automotive’s and EchoPark Automotive’s Chief Executive Officer, commented, “Our continued investment in our Charlotte EchoPark location reflects the increasing customer demand we’re seeing in the metro area and neighboring markets. Our Charlotte retail hub will continue to play a key role as we expand our EchoPark footprint throughout the region with the opening of additional EchoPark delivery and buy centers in the near future, which will enable consumers in new markets to experience the price, quality and convenience the EchoPark brand has to offer.”
“Our Charlotte EchoPark retail hub averages over 500 1-4 year old pre-owned vehicle sales per month,” said Jeff Dyke, President of Sonic Automotive and EchoPark Automotive. “With this type of customer demand and the opening of our first delivery and buy center in Greenville, South Carolina, we knew we had to expand our capacity to support the growing EchoPark brand in the Carolinas. Our Charlotte EchoPark location will supply inventory for sale through our delivery and buy centers in nearby states, which offer our guests a modern e-commerce buying experience at EchoPark.com as part of our growing 140-point nationwide distribution network.”
Located at 3648 East Independence Boulevard, the Charlotte, North Carolina, EchoPark store opened in October 2018, one of the Company’s earliest EchoPark locations, with approximately 1,500 vehicle sales in the second quarter of 2020. Overall, EchoPark saw retail used vehicle sales volume of 13,207 units in the second quarter of 2020 and is on pace to retail over 61,000 pre-owned vehicles in 2020.
Launched in the fall of 2014, EchoPark has been well-received for offering a revolutionary customer experience at its existing locations in California, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas. The EchoPark business model sells nearly new vehicles at 20-40% below new car price, providing a selection of quality late model, low-mileage vehicles with clean CarFax vehicle history reports.
About EchoPark Automotive
EchoPark Automotive is a growing operating segment within the Company that specializes in pre-owned vehicle sales and provides a unique guest experience unlike traditional used car stores. More information about EchoPark Automotive can be found at www.echopark.com.
About Sonic Automotive
Sonic Automotive, Inc., a Fortune 500 company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, is one of the nation’s largest automotive retailers. Sonic can be reached on the web atwww.sonicautomotive.com.
