Dealership Valuation Services
Valuation that reflects
what your dealership is actually worth.
Most valuation firms apply generic business valuation frameworks to automotive dealerships. We don't. Our practice is built on the understanding that dealership value is driven by franchise-specific dynamics, blue-sky conventions, OEM relationships, and market conditions that standard methodologies simply cannot capture.
CPA · ABV · ASA · CEIV
Accreditations Held
Formal & Advisory
Valuation Types
100% Confidential
Every Engagement
No Obligation
Initial Assessment
When to Engage
The right valuation at
the right moment changes outcomes.
Clients engage our valuation practice for a wide range of purposes. In every case, the common thread is the same: a credible, defensible number — prepared by accredited professionals who understand the automotive retail industry from the inside.
Transaction Planning & Sale Preparation
Before entering any sale process, a formal valuation anchors your expectations, informs your negotiating position, and ensures you are not leaving value on the table. Buyers — particularly institutional and private equity acquirers — arrive with their own valuation models. You need one too.
Shareholder & Partnership Disputes
When co-owners disagree on value — whether in a buyout, dissolution, or dispute — a defensible, accredited valuation is the only credible basis for resolution. Our reports are prepared to withstand legal scrutiny and have been used in arbitration and litigation proceedings.
Estate Planning & Succession
Dealerships are often the most significant asset in an estate. Accurate valuation is essential for equitable distribution among heirs, minimizing tax exposure, and ensuring the business can be transferred — or sold — on terms that reflect its true worth.
Financing & Capital Raises
Lenders and capital partners require credible valuations before extending credit or investing. A formal report from accredited valuators gives financial institutions the confidence to structure facilities around the real value of your franchise and real property assets.
Strategic Planning & Portfolio Review
Dealer groups managing multiple rooftops benefit from periodic valuations to understand the relative performance and market value of each asset — informing decisions about capital allocation, acquisition targets, and which stores to hold, grow, or divest.
OEM Approval & Franchise Transfers
OEM approval processes often require formal documentation of dealership value. Our valuations are structured to satisfy manufacturer requirements and support the approval of franchise transfers, open point applications, and dealer network restructuring.
Our Methodology
Dealership valuation is a
specialized discipline.
Generic business valuation frameworks — applied without modification to automotive dealerships — produce numbers that are either indefensible in a transaction or simply wrong. Our methodology integrates the technical rigour of accredited valuation standards with a deep, practitioner-level understanding of how dealerships are actually bought and sold.
Dealership-Specific
Automotive Retail Expertise
These are the valuation inputs and analytical frameworks that are unique to automotive dealerships — and that most generalist valuators either overlook or misapply. They are the difference between a number that holds up in a transaction and one that doesn't.
Blue-Sky & Goodwill Analysis
Blue-sky is the premium paid above the tangible net worth of a dealership — and it is the most misunderstood component of dealership value. It is driven by franchise desirability, market exclusivity, OEM performance standing, and historical earnings. We apply franchise-specific blue-sky multiples derived from real transaction data, not generic goodwill formulas.
Franchise-Specific Earnings Normalization
Dealership financial statements require significant normalization before they can support a credible valuation. Owner compensation, related-party transactions, real property rent adjustments, and non-recurring items must all be addressed with an understanding of how each franchise's composite model works — not just standard EBITDA adjustments.
OEM Performance & Franchise Standing
A dealership's relationship with its OEM — CSI scores, sales effectiveness, facility compliance, and approval standing — directly affects its transferability and value. We assess franchise health as a core valuation input, not an afterthought.
Real Property & Fixed Asset Coordination
Dealership real estate is often the most complex component of a transaction. We coordinate with qualified real property appraisers and assess the impact of owned versus leased facilities, facility compliance requirements, and OEM image program obligations on overall enterprise value.
Market & Comparative Transaction Benchmarking
We maintain a proprietary database of completed Canadian dealership transactions. This allows us to benchmark valuations against real market evidence — not just theoretical multiples — and to identify where a specific franchise and market position sits relative to recent comparable sales.
Traditional & Technical
Accredited Valuation Standards
Our valuators hold the most rigorous accreditations in the profession — CPA, ABV, ASA, and CEIV. Every formal report is prepared in accordance with recognized valuation standards and is defensible in legal, regulatory, and transactional contexts.
Income Approach
Capitalization of earnings and discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis, applied with dealership-specific normalization and discount rates that reflect the risk profile of automotive retail — including franchise dependency, OEM approval risk, and market concentration.
Market Approach
Guideline public company analysis and precedent transaction multiples, calibrated to the Canadian automotive retail market. We apply revenue, EBITDA, and blue-sky multiples derived from both public comparables and our proprietary transaction database.
Asset Approach
Adjusted net asset value analysis, incorporating tangible net worth, real property, parts and vehicle inventory, and the systematic identification of intangible assets — including franchise rights, customer relationships, and assembled workforce.
Accreditations
Chartered Professional Accountant
Accredited in Business Valuation
Accredited Senior Appraiser
Certified in Entity & Intangible Valuations
This combination of four internationally recognized designations is exceptionally rare in the Canadian automotive advisory market — and is what makes our valuation conclusions credible to institutional buyers, OEMs, and courts alike.
“The number on the page is only the starting point. The real work is building the financial narrative that makes a sophisticated buyer understand why that number is right.”
Charles J. Saleh — CFO & Partner, CPA · ABV · ASA · CEIV
Lead Valuator Credentials
Charles J. Saleh, CFO & Partner
Why It Matters
Credentials that hold up
when it counts most.
A valuation is only as credible as the person who prepared it. In a dealership transaction, estate proceeding, or shareholder dispute, the qualifications of your valuator are scrutinized — by buyers, lawyers, OEMs, and courts. Ours are unimpeachable.
The Only Firm With This Credential Set
The combination of CPA, ABV, ASA, and CEIV designations held by our valuation lead is exceptionally rare in Canada — and virtually unique in the automotive advisory space. These are not honorary titles; they represent years of rigorous examination, peer review, and demonstrated competency in formal valuation methodology.
Proprietary Transaction Data
Our valuation conclusions are benchmarked against a proprietary database of completed Canadian dealership transactions — not just public market data. This gives our clients access to real market evidence that generalist valuators simply do not have.
Advisors Who Have Sat at Both Tables
Our team has represented both buyers and sellers in hundreds of dealership transactions. We understand how sophisticated acquirers model dealership value — and we use that knowledge to ensure our clients' valuations are not just technically correct, but strategically positioned.
Defensible in Any Forum
Our formal valuation reports have been used in shareholder disputes, estate proceedings, OEM approval processes, and financing applications. They are prepared to withstand scrutiny — from opposing counsel, institutional lenders, and OEM approval committees alike.
Get Started
Request a confidential valuation assessment.
Submit your dealership details and a senior advisor will prepare a preliminary assessment — at no cost and no obligation. All information is handled with complete discretion.
Submit Your Details
Complete the form with your dealership's key financial and operational metrics.
Advisor Review
A senior Dealer Direct advisor reviews your submission and prepares a preliminary assessment.
Confidential Discussion
We reach out within 24 hours to discuss your valuation and explore your options.
Prefer to speak directly?
Our advisors are available for a confidential call before you submit any details.
Contact a PartnerValuation Inquiry
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