Harr Motor buys Bancroft's assets; Chrysler-Jeep dealership merged.
Byline: Bob KievraWORCESTER - Harr Motor Group said yesterday it has purchased the assets of Bancroft Chrysler-Jeep at 72 Shrewsbury St. and will relocate the franchises to its dealerships at 100-120 Gold Star Boulevard.
Harr Motor said the Jeep and Chrysler brands will become part of Harr Dodge. The new dealership will be known as Harr Chrysler Jeep Dodge. The franchises were purchased from Bertera Enterprises Inc. of West Springfield. Bertera bought the dealership last year from Bancroft Motors and had continued to operate it under the Bancroft name.
The Harr campus on Gold Star Boulevard has recently undergone a multimillion dollar renovation. In addition to Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge, Harr also operates Toyota, Ford and Scion dealerships.
"I've had my eye on it for some time,'' said Harr President Charles K. Ribakoff. "Jeep is such an iconic American product. It has a legendary reputation and we're glad to have them. Chrysler also gives us a luxury brand we don't have now.''
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Mr. Ribakoff said the Jeep and Chrysler vehicles were moved from Shrewsbury Street to Gold Star Boulevard yesterday.
He said some employees from the Shrewsbury Street dealerships would join Harr, while others would remain with Bertera. Steven F. Bertera, general manager, did not return a phone call seeking comment.
Bertera has a short-term lease on the three-acre Shrewsbury Street parcel, which consists of 60 Shrewsbury St. and 72 Shrewsbury St., said Lawrence J. Glick, whose family owns the site through Shrewsbury Street Associates LLP. The two buildings are each 30,000 square feet and will likely be redeveloped by the Glick family after the Bertera lease expires, said Mr. Glick, whose family operated Bancroft Motors. "We've had a lot of inquiries for the site," he said.
In addition to buying the Chrysler-Jeep dealership in Worcester last year, Bertera also purchased Bancroft Motors' Nissan dealership in Auburn. That franchise now operates as Bertera Nissan of Auburn.
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| Title Annotation: | BUSINESS |
|---|---|
| Publication: | Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA) |
| Date: | Mar 8, 2008 |
| Words: | 324 |
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