It isn’t often that a new Subaru dealership — a location that isn’t a replacement or renovation of an existing dealership — opens its doors in the United States. That helps explain why top U.S.
executives from Subaru and its independent distributor and franchisor for Western New York traveled to Lockport to visit a new West Herr Automotive Group showroom. “We did determine that we needed additional representation in this Buffalo market, with two more Subaru (dealerships),” said C. David Sammons, president and CEO of Subaru Distributors Corp.
, the independent distributor and franchisor based in Rockland County. West Herr Subaru of Lockport opened in May, complementing the dealer group’s Subaru location in Orchard Park, which was renovated. Northtown Automotive, which operates a Subaru dealership in Amherst, is preparing to open an additional Subaru dealership in mid 2025 at 6374 Transit Road in Cheektowaga, across from Hillview Elementary School.
Once that project is complete, Subaru will have four dealerships in the Buffalo Niagara region. Around the country, Subaru has about 600 dealerships. The nature of the competition varies from market to market.
“For us, what stands out about Buffalo is how domestically centered it is, for the General Motors brands, specifically,” Sammons said. GM and Ford have had robust market share here for decades. That stems in part from the presence of GM and Ford factories in the region, helping build generations of .
