Kerrigan Advisors represented the Janke family in the sale of Tommie Vaughn Ford, a Houston landmark dealership, to Vaughan Automotive, a Boerne, Texas-based group led by Shawn Vaughan. The sale represents Kerrigan Advisors’ 453rd franchise sold since the firm’s founding in 2014, and its 20th franchise sold in Texas since 2023, the most of any buy/sell advisor in the industry. It also marks the firm’s fourth announced transaction in a top US growth market in six weeks, following transactions in Charlotte, North Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Founded in 1957 by Tommie Vaughn, Tommie Vaughn Ford is one of the most recognized Ford dealership names in Houston, operating from the city’s Greater Heights neighborhood and owned by the Vaughn and Janke families for nearly 70 years. Located five miles from downtown Houston, it is one of only two Ford dealerships inside Houston’s 610 Loop, home to roughly 480,000 residents, and supports a base of nearly 35,000 Ford units in operation. Tommie Vaughn served as President and Chairman of the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo and was named one of the nation’s most distinguished auto dealers by TIME magazine. Following Vaughn’s passing in 2005, the dealership’s ownership transitioned to his daughter, Jeanie Vaughn Janke, and her husband, Jim Janke, who was named a TIME Dealer of the Year Nominee in 2018.
The buyer, Vaughan Automotive, is one of the fastest-growing dealership groups in the country, having increased group revenue to over $1 billion in just five years and now ranks #80 on the 2025 Automotive News Top 150 dealership group list. Among the Top 150, Vaughan ranks #2 for average revenue per dealership and #3 for average new vehicle retail sales per dealership, with a four-store portfolio concentrated in major metro markets in Texas and California.
“For nearly 70 years, our family has had the distinct privilege of serving the greater Houston community, a legacy my father-in-law began in 1957 and one our family was proud to carry forward to the next generation,” said Jim Janke, Owner of Tommie Vaughn Ford. “While a sale is bittersweet, we believe Vaughan Automotive was the ideal buyer and we are confident the business, including our employees and customers, will be in excellent hands after the sale.”
“We also want to thank the Kerrigan team, especially Erin Kerrigan and Chris Gempton, for the expert guidance they provided our family as we contemplated such an important decision. When we decided the time was right for a sale, Kerrigan was our first and only call. Their reputation in the industry and legacy of success in the state of Texas, particularly with selling top tier dealerships in prime markets, were all invaluable to us. Their keen knowledge of the buyer community and trends impacting buy/sells is unmatched in the industry and it was that knowledge that was key to the success of this transaction.”
“It was a true honor to represent the Janke family and Tommie Vaughn Ford, a storied dealership with nearly a 70-year history in Houston’s auto retail community,” said Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “We are grateful for the trust the Janke family placed in our firm to steward their legacy to the right buyer and congratulate Vaughan Automotive and Shawn Vaughan on the acquisition of their first Ford franchise and a marquee dealership in the center of Houston.”
Houston is the fifth-largest MSA in the US and the second fastest-growing among the top 10 markets, with population up 55% since 2000 and projected to nearly double by 2050. The market is home to 26 Fortune 500 companies, the highest concentration in the Southern US, and was named the number one Best Big City to Live In by U.S. News & World Report in 2024. It is also one of the largest auto retail markets in the country, with over 355,000 new units sold annually. Tommie Vaughn Ford is located in the Greater Heights area of Houston, one of city’s fastest-growing neighborhoods, where median household incomes exceed $160,000, more than double the US average.
Ford is the top-selling domestic brand in Houston, commanding nearly 13% market share, and holds the highest sales per domestic dealership in the nation. The brand’s award-winning lineup, led by the F-150 – America’s best-selling truck for nearly 50 consecutive years – and the Expedition, continues to earn top honors, including Kelley Blue Book’s Best Buy awards for Best Full-Size Truck and Best Full-Size SUV.
“Ford is one of the most sought-after domestic franchises in today’s buy/sell market, driven by rising dealer trust and high sales throughput per dealership, both meaningful indicators of franchise value today,” said Ryan Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “In a top-growth market like Houston, where Ford is the #1 domestic brand with a commanding market share, well-located, high-volume Ford stores like Tommie Vaughn Ford are exactly the kind of dealership drawing strong buyer demand and premium blue sky values.”
“This transaction follows our other recent transaction announcements this summer, including the sale of Paramount Foreign Cars Italia in Charlotte, Hennessy Automobile Companies in Atlanta and Holman Honda in Fort Lauderdale, all of which reflect what we are seeing across the buy/sell market: a rise in top franchises in the highest growth markets coming to market to take advantage of strong valuations and robust buyer demand,” added Erin Kerrigan. “This series of recent deals cements our firm’s position as the leading sell-side advisor to the industry’s most valuable dealerships in the highest growth markets and I could not be more grateful to our team for their hard work on behalf of our clients.”
Stephen Dietrich, Brooke Sizer, Kyla Baker and Kyle Gaughan served as legal counsel to Tommie Vaughn Ford. Eric Pridgen of Underwood & Roberts, PLLC and Emily Cowles of Bricker Graydon Wyatt LLP both served as legal counsel to Vaughan Automotive.
About Kerrigan Advisors
Kerrigan Advisors is the leading sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide. Since its founding in 2014, the firm has led the industry with the sale of over 450 franchises generating more than $11 billion in client proceeds, including three of the largest transactions in auto retail history – the sale of Jim Koons Automotive Companies to Asbury Automotive Group, Leith Automotive to Holman, and Hennessy Automotive Companies to Group 1 Automotive (planned and expected to close in Q4 2026). The firm advises the industry’s leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, Kerrigan Advisors is the only firm in auto retail exclusively dedicated to sell-side advisory, providing its clients with the assurance of a conflict-free approach.
Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors’ signature blue sky charts, multiples and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. To download a preview of the report, click here. The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the US market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail. To read the 2025 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here. To read the 2026 Kerrigan OEM Survey, click here. Kerrigan Advisors is also the co-author of NADA’s Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership. Additionally, Kerrigan Advisors publishes a podcast, Beyond Blue Sky – A Kerrigan Conversation, where Kerrigan Advisors’ clients and industry leaders share the mindset, strategy and personal stories behind a once-in-a-generation transaction.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260824581729/en/
Media gallery
