Lithia Motors, Inc. was founded in 1946 by Walt DeBoer in Ashland, Oregon. Walt had five employees, sold 30 vehicles per year and had annual sales of less than $200,000. Walt was tragically struck and killed by a car while a pedestrian in September of 1968. Sid DeBoer, the eldest son in the family of 6 children and at the time only 25 years old, assumed control of the small Chrysler-Dodge store.
In 1970, Lithia purchased the Dodge Center in Medford, shifting operations from Ashland to Medford, the largest market in the Southern Oregon region. Also in 1970, Dick Heiman, then the District Manager for Chrysler Corporation, joined SID Deboer to become partner in running the Medford Store. Their special relationship helped turn this single store from its humble beginnings in the small town of Ashland into Lithia - America’s Car and Truck Store.
From 1970 to 1991, Lithia experienced sustained growth to a total of five stores and 19 franchises in the Southern Oregon area. It is in these stores that the "Lithia" operating model was developed. These dealerships are known as the "core stores" and remain the model for other aquired operations in regional markets like Medford and Rogue Valley.
On December 18, 1996, 3.0 million newly issued shares of Lithia Motors, Inc., Class A Common Stock were sold at the initial public offering price of $11.00 per share. The proceeds from this offering provided the capital for our growth and made Lithia Motors a pioneer in the publicly -owned segment of the automobile industry. Lithia Motors, Inc., is now one of the largest and most respected full-service new and used vehicle retailers in the United States. Lithia offers many brands of new domestic and imported vehicles, all makes of used vehicles, parts and service as well as finance and insurance. Our internet sales are centralized at "Lithia.com" - America’s Car and Truck Store.
At the end of 2005, Lithia owned 109 dealerships in 15 states representing 26 brands with annual sales of approximately 2.93 billion dollars. Lithia Motors common stock now trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "LAD".
In 1970, Lithia purchased the Dodge Center in Medford, shifting operations from Ashland to Medford, the largest market in the Southern Oregon region. Also in 1970, Dick Heiman, then the District Manager for Chrysler Corporation, joined SID Deboer to become partner in running the Medford Store. Their special relationship helped turn this single store from its humble beginnings in the small town of Ashland into Lithia - America’s Car and Truck Store.
From 1970 to 1991, Lithia experienced sustained growth to a total of five stores and 19 franchises in the Southern Oregon area. It is in these stores that the "Lithia" operating model was developed. These dealerships are known as the "core stores" and remain the model for other aquired operations in regional markets like Medford and Rogue Valley.
On December 18, 1996, 3.0 million newly issued shares of Lithia Motors, Inc., Class A Common Stock were sold at the initial public offering price of $11.00 per share. The proceeds from this offering provided the capital for our growth and made Lithia Motors a pioneer in the publicly -owned segment of the automobile industry. Lithia Motors, Inc., is now one of the largest and most respected full-service new and used vehicle retailers in the United States. Lithia offers many brands of new domestic and imported vehicles, all makes of used vehicles, parts and service as well as finance and insurance. Our internet sales are centralized at "Lithia.com" - America’s Car and Truck Store.
At the end of 2005, Lithia owned 109 dealerships in 15 states representing 26 brands with annual sales of approximately 2.93 billion dollars. Lithia Motors common stock now trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "LAD".