Jeff Sachs Auto Park - one of Central Kentucky's largest new car dealerships - closed at the end of business on Monday.

Owner Jeff Sachs told The State Journal that a dismal economy was a major factor. He said Monday he had 40 employees and at one time had as many as 100. His dealership was on Versailles Road in Frankfort.

He said 75 to 80 percent of his company's sales have been SUVs and trucks, and that market is just not there anymore.

"General Motors is very dependent on trucks and SUV business, plus luxury cars and Corvettes, and people are buying only when they absolutely have to with gas at $4 a gallon. I would say a lot of dealerships now are certainly not having any fun."

Sachs said he has not, and will not, file bankruptcy. All debts will be paid and all employees will receive a final paycheck, he said.

He said GM is buying back the franchise and buying back all the new cars. GM, headquartered in Detroit, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

Sachs said Monday was a "very sad day. I've had a wonderful run here in Frankfort for 20 years. At one time we were the biggest dealership in the area. I've had wonderful customers and wonderful employees so it's pretty tough to be mad."

He said government would miss his business "because we generated a lot of sales tax."

Franklin County Clerk Guy Zeigler said, "Anytime you lose a large dealership like that, you get hit with a loss in tax dollars and license fees. It's certainly going to be a loss to the community."

On a new $20,000 car, the usage tax collected would be $1,080, Zeigler said. "My office would get 3 percent of that as a commission for collecting, or $32.40, and the state would get the remainder."
Frankfort Mayor Bill May said he was surprised to hear that Jeff Sachs was closing and said he was concerned about the employees.

"It is my sincere hope that the employees will be able to find good jobs as soon as possible," May told The State Journal.

Franklin County Judge-Executive Ted Collins said the Bluegrass Area Development District could help employees find new jobs. He said he hopes a GM-Chevrolet dealership will reopen in the Jett area once the economy recovers.

"I hated to see that Jeff Sachs Auto Park is closing," Collins said. "We have had a strong GM-Chevrolet dealership for years."

Phil Kerrick, executive director of the Capital Community Economic-Industrial Development Authority, said the closure of Jeff Sachs is indicative of the condition of the overall economy.

"The price of energy, and the cost of gas at the pump trickles down to the suppliers and then on to the dealerships," he said. "It's a difficult time."

Toyota has also recently announced it will suspend production of several trucks and SUVs and Nissan will halt production of minivans and luxury SUVs. Locally, the Topy aluminum plant also closed and Bendix relocated local jobs to other locations. Home Depot has closed, among 15 in the nation.
"The whole industry is scrambling," Kerrick said, referring to the auto industry.

Jason Haley, general manager of Gates Nissan, said, "We hate to see a long-standing family-owned business leave. It's awful for the employees. It's bad for a lot of families. The market's tough. It's been challenging for all of us."

Chris Gifford, general manager of Bob Allen Chrysler, said "I hate to see it happen."

The future of the automobile industry will be hybrids and electric cars, Sachs said.

"There will still be big cars, but I don't think it will ever go back to the way it was. It's going to be a small car society."

He said GM has "some very good mileage cars, but there are too many dealerships and it takes too long to get us enough cars."

Sachs said he doesn't know what he will do next.

"I'm very healthy so I will do something," he said.

He said he may go on vacation to contemplate what he will do next.

Sachs came to Frankfort from Canton, Ohio, to buy the business in 1987.

In a 2003 State Journal story, Sachs said when he bought the struggling Chevrolet business on Versailles Road about 300 cars were sold there each year. Sachs expanded the business and said in 2003 about 2,000 cars were sold each year at his auto park.

In that newspaper story, Sachs credited his employees, many who had been with him since he started, with helping make the business a success.

Sachs was quoted as saying he was accessible and knew if a customer is not happy, he'd hear about it.
"There's no place for me to hide so I have to take good care of people," Sachs said then. "I want people to be happy. There are an awful lot of ex-dealers in the world who did not take care of their customers."

He said he preferred to use a no-nonsense approach.

"We never do gimmick advertising," Sachs said. "If I wanted to join the circus, I would have done it as a kid."

In 2003 he said his dealership was the No. 1 GM dealer in the area as far as customer satisfaction and sales. He kept an average of 500 cars of all makes and models on the lot, he said then.