Tim Sturdevant, the third-generation owner of Sturdevant’s Auto Parts and self-confessed workhorse has announced the sale of his business to Minnesota-based company Automotive Parts Headquarters Inc. (APH). Automotive Parts Headquarters is similarly a third-generation, family-owned business that celebrated its 100th-anniversary last year. Between them, the two companies have 149 years of experience in the automotive parts distribution business and almost 200 years combined experience in the automotive industry.
For customers of APH, it’s business as usual. The leading automotive parts distributor operates 149 corporate and 32 independent stores across the USA. Customers of Sturdevant’s will notice a rebranding of the 49 Sterdevant’s corporate stores as Sturdevant’s Auto Value. The remaining independent stores will fall under the umbrella of the Auto Value Brand and are expected to triple the group's already impressive buying power. The acquisition boosts the number of stores under APH’s umbrella to nearly 200 corporate and over 75 independent dealers.
The acquisition signals the changing of the guard and the end of an era for Tim Sturdevant, who, together with his family and partners, has turned the parts distributor into an automotive powerhouse since its humble beginnings in 1922. With headquarters in Sioux Falls, S.D, the business was launched in Pipestone, Minn., and Wahpeton, N.D. Almost a century later, Sturdevant’s warehouse houses $14 million work of stock and generates $2.97 million in sales (USD) annually.
What makes this acquisition unique is both Sturdevant’s and APH both being family-run automotive businesses across several generations. Outgoing president and CEO of Sturdevant, Tim Sturdevant stated, “We have a very similar culture. We’ve shared best practices for generations, so a lot of our policies line up, too.”
APH began as the National Bushing & Parts Co. in Minneapolis, 1920. The original business model was focused on carrying spare parts for classic cars, tractors, and trucks of the roaring ’20s with one of their best-selling parts being Bosch magnetos for Model T Fords. APH found success with a newly established machining service until Automotive Parts Headquarters Inc. as it’s known today was established by Jack Barlett and his four partners in 1965, focusing solely on parts distribution.
The acquisition of Sturdevant’s Auto Parts by APH is the latest step in a successful strategy of growth through acquisition. In the period 1988 – 2008 APH has grown its store numbers from 17 to 71, boosting annual sales from $21.3 million to $70.8 million. The strategy is not one of simply taking over the competition, but carefully selecting companies to partner with and integrating their team members into the APH family.
Respect between the Barlett and Sturdevant families is mutual. Corey Bartlett, CEO and president of APH explained “Given our history with the Sturdevant family, we are excited and humbled Tim (Sturdevant) has chosen to sell his business to APH and look forward to building on their strong tradition of quality products, knowledgeable employee and superior service”.
Tim Sturdevant mirrored the sentiment via a press release. “We have known the Bartlett family for many years – The Sturdevant family and Bartlett family have great respect for each other. As I thought about our company’s future, I knew APH would be a great fit to continue our family culture and growth.”
Following a great of great uncertainty that disrupted a large majority of the automotive industry worldwide, it should be comforting to employees, customers, and communities that rely on Sturdevant’s Auto Parts to find the company’s futures in steady hands. The aligning of two strong regional forces puts APH in a strong position as the automotive industry contemplates its post-pandemic recovery.
