Carvana opening reconditioning facility in Florida
An omnichannel platform for buying and selling used cars is expanding production capacity and inventory in the Sarasota, Fla. market.
Carvana plans to bring inspection and reconditioning center (IRC) capabilities to its existing ADESA Sarasota wholesale auction site located in Bradenton, Fla. The site measures approximately 60 acres, has more than 3,000 parking spaces and has hosted wholesale auto auctions for 10 years.
The company has been announcing plans to expand the auction and reconditioning capabilities of existing ADESA centers around the country. Examples in the past several months include metro areas such as Chicago, Syracuse and Long Island, N.Y., San Francisco and Dallas-Fort Worth.
The integration will establish a new pool of Carvana retail inventory, while wholesale buyers will obtain enhanced on-site inspection and reconditioning capabilities and ongoing access to ADESA’s in-lane and digital auction services.
Carvana’s proprietary CARLI software platform will support the site’s transition to an IRC-enabled facility, which the company expects to employ about 100 people.
How Carvana’s e-commerce model works
All vehicles in Carvana’s national inventory come with a seven-day return policy as opposed to a traditional test drive. According to Carvana, this ensures customers have the right amount of time to determine if the vehicle fits their needs.
Customers can also sell their current vehicle to Carvana and receive an offer in as little as five minutes, without having to purchase a vehicle. To sell a vehicle, customers enter their vehicle identification number (VIN) or license plate number on Carvana.com, answer a few questions, and then Carvana can pick up the vehicle and pay them as soon as the next day.
The e-tailer offers same-and next-day delivery of vehicles, in addition to its "car vending machines" in select markets and seven Stellantis dealerships in cities across the country including its first-ever test drive location in Dallas.
[READ MORE: Online retailer disrupts dealership category with ‘car vending’ machines]
"Bringing IRC capabilities to ADESA Sarasota strengthens our national network and our customer offering while creating meaningful job opportunities in the Sarasota area," said Brian Boyd, senior VP of inventory at Carvana. "We're proud to add approximately 100 jobs to the region and look forward to growing our local team as we improve selection and speed for local customers."
Founded in 2012 and based in Phoenix, Carvana provides as-soon-as-next-day delivery to automotive shoppers in over 300 U.S. markets.
