America’s Group continues its “coast to coast” M&A growth.

The auction company said on Monday it has acquired Motley’s Richmond Auto Auction in Virginia, which is its third purchase announced in the last two months.

In June, America’s announced the acquisition of San Antonio Auto Auction, followed by July’s purchase of Corpus Christi Auto Auction.

With the latest acquisition, America’s Group now has 41 auction locations. This is the group’s second location in Virginia.

“Richmond Auto Auction’s dedication to customer satisfaction and superior service reflects the core values of our business,” America’s Group CEO Chuck Tapp said in a news release.

“This acquirement allows us to offer a broader selection of vehicles and reaffirms our commitment to providing top-notch services to our customers, wherever they are located,” Tapp said.

Richmond Auto Auction hosts a 500-unit sale at 9:30 a.m. Fridays at its five-lane facility. It also hosts a GSA Public Auction every third Friday and offers digital options, as well.

Commenting on his sale of the auction to America’s, Mark Motley said in a release, “After owning the auto auction for over 34 years, my family and I believe it was time to move aside and let America’s take the Richmond Auto Auction to the next level.

“Selling your business can be a tough decision, but America’s has demonstrated a high level of professionalism and best business practices that made the decision much easier,” Motley said. “Words cannot convey our sincere gratitude to our buyers, sellers and our dedicated staff.  Although it’s like selling your first-born, I believe the auction is in good hands with America’s.”

America’s has been at the forefront of the growth in auto auction M&A this year, perhaps the most active in that regard.

Chris Elliott, who is vice president of mergers & acquisitions at America’s Group, joined the Auto Remarketing Podcast last month, where he discussed the company’s growth strategy.

“We’re actively wanting to acquire across the country. We’re looking at things coast to coast, really,” Elliott said in the interview, which occurred shortly before the Corpus Christi acquisition was announced. “ … And we’ll continue to grow and acquire more auctions. We want to build up the Americas portfolio. We’re definitely open for business from that standpoint.”

Asked in that July interview if America’s had a specific regional plan in mind, Elliott said, “We are really coast-to-coast. I would say we’re more focused on the East Coast, if you look just at the map of where our auctions are at the moment.

“So, we’d definitely like to continue to expand kind of westward and grow that footprint as it’s not maybe as large outside of Texas. We’ve got a couple in Southern California. We’ve got our biggest location (in) Kansas City,” he said. 

“But we really want to cover the whole map. And so, there’s parts of the United States that we’re not in yet. And we’d like to kind of grow that, especially on that West Coast footprint.”