CARY, N.C. -

Monday’s dealer roundup includes the growth of a 3-year-old California group along with the latest charity efforts of an Atlanta-area group in business since the early 1970s.

Beginning first in the Golden State, Hello Auto Group announced it has opened a new Mazda dealership in San Diego’s Kearny Mesa community. The dealership and service center are the first Hello Auto location in the market.

“Hello Auto Group is excited to be expanding in southern California,” Hello Auto president Karl Schmidt said in a news release. “We are thrilled to be bringing San Diego the first Hello Auto dealership.”

This is the third Mazda dealership for Hello Auto Group. The group will be operating the new Mazda store out of the existing brick and mortar dealership and nearby service center.

Hello Auto said it will be breaking ground for a new, state-of-the art building on the property in the spring.

Hello Auto Group launched its group in 2019. It currently operates five dealerships in California, including:

— Kia of Valencia
— Mazda of Valencia
— Subaru of Temecula
— Mazda of Temecula
— Mazda of San Diego

A sixth store will be joining the Hello Auto Group family in the spring with a new Subaru dealership in Valencia.

“We’re overjoyed to be able to build our small, community-based dealership group from the ground up — supported by our core values of being genuine, honest, respectful and fair,” Hello Auto general manager Idaliz Maldonado said in the news release. “We’ve built our business around an information-rich, shopper-driven approach that puts customers in the driver’s seat.

“When you visit, we want to make you feel like you’re at home. We love the communities we serve,” Maldonado continued. “Our welcoming approach truly appears to resonate — not only amongst our customers, but also our employees who are the lifeblood of our organization. We’ve quickly found that regardless of the community, good people centered around a common goal make all the difference. That’s what I love about this organization.”

Jim Ellis' effort to reduce poverty

Meanwhile in Atlanta, the Jim Ellis Automotive Group on Monday announced a donation of $68,850 to the Atlanta Children’s Shelter (ACS) that was recently raised during the group’s annual Holiday Giving Campaign.

According to a news release, all 20 Jim Ellis family-owned and operated dealerships participated in the special fundraising sales event with the end goal of positively impacting the lives of homeless children and their families in Atlanta and surrounding areas.

Customers who shopped at any Jim Ellis dealership between Nov. 26 and Dec. 31 enjoyed the additional benefit of a cause-based vehicle purchase that would, in turn, support the local community.

“It gives us great pleasure to make this donation to a very special organization like the Atlanta Children’s Shelter,” Jim Ellis Automotive Group vice president Stacey Ellis Hodges said. “All children need comfort, safety, love and reassurance and I am so happy that we can play a part in ensuring that these children receive what they deserve.”

Jim Ellis Automotive Group has been serving the Atlanta area since 1971, starting with Volkswagen as the flagship brand. The group has expanded to 17 brands and 20 dealerships covering Atlanta, Buford, Kennesaw, Sandy Springs, South Fulton and Marietta.

Atlanta Children’s Shelter is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization that provides free quality daycare, emotional support, an educational curriculum for homeless children and focused social services for their families.

“We are deeply humbled by the outpouring of support from the Jim Ellis Holiday Giving Campaign,” said Sandra Holiday, executive director of Atlanta Children’s Shelter. “With over $68,000 donated to our mission, a real impact was made on the well-being of Atlanta’s homeless families.

“This donation provides five homeless children with scholarships for one year in our licensed early childhood education program, it nourishes 15 homeless children in our classrooms for an entire school year with daily healthy meals and snacks, and it supports 20 homeless families transitioning them into housing with free childcare and emergency assistance for rent and utilities, keeping them stable for one year,” Holiday went on to say.