Fairhurst Automotive has acquired the former Crossroads Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-RAM dealership in Prince George, Virginia and changed the name to South Richmond Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-RAM.
Ken Banks and Chris Justice are now co-owners, each owning an undisclosed minority stake in the store.
The dealership was acquired using funds from the Ellenae Fairhurst Entrepreneurial Trust, established by former Lexus and Infiniti franchise owner Ellenae Fairhurst to build wealth in the Black community. Fairhurst Automotive is the trust’s retail automotive investment arm. This is the second acquisition by Fairhurst Automotive.
The group plans to acquire another couple of dealerships in 2026 and use them to develop first-time dealership owners’ management talent, Stuart McCallum, president of Fairhurst Automotive, told WardsAuto in a phone interview.
“What we really want to do is get a nice platform base of stores then slow down, get them running like Swiss clocks, and use those stores as training grounds,” he said.
Fairhurst Automotive partners with individuals it assesses have “tremendous potential to operate a store but lack the capital,” McCalllum said.
It buys a store then provides assistance when needed in operating the dealership. The operators may acquire a majority stake in a store over time.
The focus is on African-American candidates in keeping with Ellenae Fairhurst’s mandate.
“This was established to further her legacy,” said McCallum. “She wanted to help build wealth in the African-American community.”
A tiny percentage of the some 18,000 new vehicle dealerships in the United States are owned by minorities, including African-Americans.
Stellantis opens doors for new dealership owners
Banks and Justice both have retail automotive experience but neither has owned a new car dealership.
Stellantis, the parent company of the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and RAM brands, is more open than other manufacturers to selling to first-time owners, Andy Church, VP, East Coast for Dealer Solutions Mergers and Acquisitions, told WardsAuto in a phone interview. DSMA represented the seller in the transaction.
“There are some brands where if you have never run a dealership as a GM or been to NADA Academy, they won’t even consider you,” Church said. “For Stellantis, if you have business experience, not necessarily new vehicle experience – for example a used car lot – they are open to considering you as an owner.”
McCallum agreed.
“The odds of us being approved for a Toyota store is probably zero at this point,” he said. “We don’t have a long enough history. Chrysler and Nissan are probably going to be our best friends for the next couple of years. They are more open to people with non-traditional backgrounds.”
