Calculated Risk Dealership Group sold to A 'Family Office' Private Holding Company
In what is thought to be the largest (and one of the first) deals of its kind since Harley relaxed its policy on private equity store ownership, Adam Smith has sold his Calculated Risk group of Texas Harley dealerships to Michigan based Navigant Oak, LLC.
The deal includes Texas Harley, the largest H-D store in Texas. The structure of the sale allows Smith to retain 20% ownership of all the dealerships as well as a seat on the board of directors. The new holding company for all the stores will operate as Navigant Motor Group.
The Calculated Risk dealerships purchased include Smith's flagship Texas Harley-Davidson in Bedford, Texoma Harley-Davidson in Sherman, Lumberjack Harley-Davidson in Nacogdoches, Roughneck Harley-Davidson in Longview, H-D Waco and Texarkana Harley-Davidson. It also includes Lucky Penny Cycles in Bedford and Houston, which specialize in pre-owned motorcycles.
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| Adam Smith opened his first Harley dealership in 1996 at the age of 22. |
Smith, 48, opened his first Harley-Davidson dealership in Grand Prairie, Texas, in 1996, making him the youngest person to own and operate a Harley-Davidson dealership at the age of 22. In 2017, Smith opened Texas' largest Harley-Davidson dealership. Texas Harley-Davidson is 72,000 square feet, sits on six acres and has two showrooms.
Smith served as the 2018 Harley-Davidson Dealer Advisory Council president, representing the approximately 675 Harley-Davidson dealers across the nation. His dealerships have also earned multiple coveted Bar & Shield awards from Harley-Davidson.
The sale to Navigant Oak represents one of the first dealership acquisitions by a financial buyer in the Harley-Davidson arena. The parent company has typically prevented family offices and private equity investors from acquiring dealership franchises. Recently Harley-Davidson has relaxed ownership restrictions to facilitate growth.
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| The sale of the $100m in sales Calculated Risk Group includes Texas H-D, the largest Harley dealership in Texas. |
Navigant Oak (NavOak) is a private holding company for ex Cummins man Greg Boll's family-owned portfolio of businesses and investments. Navigant Oak currently has holdings in several industries including aerospace, HVAC, real estate, transportation, retail, industrial equipment, power generation, business services and automotive supply.
Businesses owned include Cummins Bridgeway LLC, an exclusive distributor for Cummins, Inc. "Navigant Oak was the best cultural fit for Calculated Risk and I appreciate that they are a family company," said Smith.
"I've been in this business 31 years - that's a lot of friends and motorcycles and rides. I started with one 6,000 sq ft store with six team members and grew to eight locations with more than $100m in annual revenue. I accomplished what I set out to accomplish in this industry. This is the right partner and the right time for me to find out what might be next in life for me and to take a back seat for once."