Ricart Automotive expands complex

Ricart Automotive Group is expanding its fast-growing fleet and commercial service offerings by creating a new facility in Groveport that will also include a car museum.

Ricart last week began remodeling a 113,000-squarefoot building at 4241 Williams Road, across the road from the current 67-acre Ricart Mega Mall complex.

“The big change that’s happening is that personal vehicle ownership is declining and the fleet side has overtaken it,” said Rick Ricart, president and director of sales and marketing of Ricart Automotive Group. “This year, for the first time ever, we sold more trucks through the fleet building than personal retail.”

Ricart controls 68 percent of the Ford fleet business in central Ohio and, anticipating further growth, bought a building for fleet service a few years ago. But the business outgrew that facility within a year.

“The automotive industry is ever changing, and we think this is the right target to shoot at, so we’re pulling the trigger,” Ricart said.

Ricart Automotive will invest approximately $1 million in the building by the time the project is finished, Ricart said. About 35,000 square feet of the building will be devoted to wholesale parts, particularly parts for heavy-duty trucks and commercial fleets. About 64,000 square feet will be devoted to fleet and commercial service, and about 6,000 square feet will go to fleet sales.

“The rest of the building will be dedicated to a classic car museum and space reserved for ‘what the future holds,’ “he said.

“We have to be prepared for anything in the future. If that means autonomous cars, we have to have the first autonomous service door there. We’re looking at figuring out mobile service, pickup and delivery, commercial rental. There’s a lot of different items we’re looking at.”

The new facility is part of Ricart’s strategy for growth as vehicle ownership declines while alternative transportation, fleet, ride sharing and electrification grows, said Dan Bryan, general manager of Ricart Fleet and Commercial Business Solutions.

“We want to be a one-call solution for businesses, whether in service, sales or just a question about something like (Department of Transportation) regulations,” Bryan said. “You get some of these trucks, it’s a $200,000 investment, so you want to maximize what you do.”