Local auto group buys Missouri dealership

TAMPA --  Morgan Auto Group and Missouri businessman Dan Kellar has purchased a Kia dealership in Columbia, Mo.

The dealership, which previously operated under Head Motor Co., has since been renamed Kia of Columbia. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Kellar was named Kia of Columbia's new president and general manager. He previously spent 26 years in the Joe Machens family of dealerships. Kellar worked in sales, sales management and finance management positions before becoming the general manager of Joe Machens Toyota & BMW. A press release announcing Kellar's appointment reports that within his first year of managing day-to-day operations for Joe Machens, the sales volume and store profitability of the auto dealer increased by 80%.

The purchase marks Tampa-based Morgan Auto Group's only auto dealership outside of Florida. It currently owns 13 locations in the Tampa Bay and Gainesville/Ocala areas.