Less than six months after Off Lease Only filed for bankruptcy and abruptly shut down its used car business in Bradenton and four other Florida cities, Hanna Cars of Bradenton opens for business Thursday.
New owner Elie Hanna said he personally visited Off Lease Only locations in West Palm Beach, North Fort Lauderdale, Opa-locka and Orlando, before settling on the Bradenton location at 3230 14th St. W., Bradenton.
“I liked this facility best,” he said Tuesday.
Hanna, who has used car dealerships in Raleigh and Sanford, North Carolina, has already purchased a home in Bradenton and intends to make the dealership as successful as his other dealerships.
The Raleigh store sells between 4,000 and 5,000 cars a year, he said.
“You have to commit all the way,” Hanna said.
Hanna Cars opens Bradenton dealership
John Burke, director of operations for Hanna Cars, said opening the Bradenton dealership is a homecoming for him and his wife. He is a graduate of Manatee High School and she is a graduate of Bradenton Christian School.