Wholesale auto auction provides new service to Rochester area
Stephanie Eden has always been a car nut.
Growing up in South Carolina, she watched her father work in his wholesale auto auctioning business. And while she has done many jobs she calls rewarding, her heart remained in the auto business. After attending an auto auction in Pennsylvania several years ago where thousand of cars were bought and sold in a single day, she decided it was time to follow in her father’s footsteps.
Eden opened Upstate Auto Auction, an indoor wholesale business auctioning used vehicles, this month inside Rochester Tech Park, 771 Elmgrove Road, Gates. Auctions will take place every Thursday, starting July 16, for registered auto dealers, leasing companies and repossessors who wish to buy and sell used vehicles. They are not open to the public.
Until now, the main wholesale auction sites for Rochester-area dealers were in Syracuse, Buffalo or Pennsylvania.
With General Motors Corp. and Chrysler filing for bankruptcy, the used car market is seeing an upswing, said Brad McAreavy, president of the Rochester Automobile Dealers Association.
Giant U.S. car companies selling off some of their brand-name lines has created a niche that Upstate Auto can serve, he said.
“Having a new business like this, which serves as the middleman for buying and selling cars, definitely benefits the local dealers in this area who have to travel far now to get their cars,” said McAreavy. “They have a chance to be successful, and anything that brings new jobs to the area is very encouraging.”
Headquartered in a 28,000-square-foot building, Upstate Auto will start with 100 employees and Eden plans to grow to 600 in the next five years.
Eden, 34, of Webster, said she knew she would have a few detractors when she announced her plans.
“I’ve heard it all. People telling me it’s a bad economy, the auto industry is struggling, starting any type of business is difficult, ‘what are you doing?’” said Eden. “But I believe that this business model can work because there is nothing like this in our area.”
An indoor auctioneering site would shelter cars from harsh weather and offer an alternative to the outdoor-dominated businesses.
“Dealers are the lifeblood of any successful auction, but they are provided very little in the way of accommodations and personal service,” said Eden.
“That is what I hope to change with my business, by giving them everything from a climate-controlled indoor environment, to a paperless transaction to process the sale, to complementary food and beverages after a day at my auction.”
For three years, she researched the best area locations that could offer indoor space to house 300 to 400 cars, easy access to an expressway and the opportunity to expand. Rochester Tech Park had it all.
“I think it’s an unknown jewel in the area that a lot of businesses should take a look at,” said Eden. “They worked with me quickly to make everything happen and it’s a beautiful complex.”
Being in a male-dominated industry didn’t deter Eden from her dream. In fact, company officials want to empower other women who have an interest in cars. About 70 percent of the employees at Upstate Auto are female, including all four owners.
“There are women nationwide who are doing incredible in this industry, and we just want to add to that list and show that women can make it happen just like the guys do,” said Kimberly Hoffman of Greece, one of the co-owners. “We are all from this area and we know we can succeed and bring something.”
