Barrier Acquires Bellevue Lincoln-Mercury

    BELLEVUE, Wash.--Dec. 17, 2001--Bellevue-based Barrier Motors announced today the acquisition of the Bellevue Lincoln and Mercury dealerships for an undisclosed amount.
    Along with the purchase, the company plans to begin immediately building a new $3 million facility and will change the dealerships' name to Lincoln-Mercury of Bellevue.
    The purchase will bring the number of franchises owned by Barrier Motors to eight, making it the one of the largest automotive dealers in the Pacific Northwest and the premier luxury automotive group in the Puget Sound region.
    Bellevue Lincoln-Mercury has an estimated 2001 annual sales of $24 million. According to the Puget Sound Business Journal's "Book of Lists," Bellevue Lincoln-Mercury, formerly owned and operated by Tom and Mike Evered, sold almost 900 vehicles in 1999, earning a spot among the Top 20 Auto Dealers in the area.
    "Barrier's approach to an acquisition is to combine the best practices from both organizations," said Jimmy Barrier, president. "Our companies believe that success is dependent on the ability to create and maintain good relationships with all the people that we do business with -- customers, vendors and employees."
    Barrier Motors will retain Evered's current employees including all in their management staff. The General Manager for the new operation is Kjell Schei, formerly Sales Manager of Barrier Jaguar. Kjell has held various positions since joining Barrier in 1996 and is a graduate of the National Automobile Dealers Associated (NADA) Dealer Academy.
    One of Kjell's first projects will be to oversee the construction of a new facility at the existing location, 420 116th Ave NE, Bellevue. While construction is taking place, the dealerships' operations will be moved to a nearby temporary location, so as not to disrupt sales and service.
    "This new facility will be state-of-the-art and will incorporate the newest Lincoln Center design concept to be consistent with Lincoln-Mercury's new image," added Barrier.
    The new ownership also marks the beginning of a new name, Lincoln-Mercury of Bellevue. Barrier Motors plans to change the name so it is in better alignment with its seven other franchises.

    About Barrier Motors

    Barrier Motors was established by Jimmy Barrier in 1985. In the years since, Barrier Motors has grown to encompass eight automotive franchises: Mercedes-Benz (1985), Volvo (1991), Saab (1991), Jaguar (1993), Porsche (1993), Audi (1993), Lincoln (2001) and Mercury (2001), all located in Bellevue.