R.J. Brunelli Becomes AAMCO's Natl. Rep'

OLD BRIDGE, NJ—Locally-based R.J. Brunelli & Co. LLC has been retained by AAMCO Transmissions, Inc. as its exclusive national real estate representative.

The brokerage firm will work with the transmission and total car care chain's real estate department to assist new franchisees seeking locations as well as existing franchisees that are looking to open additional shops or relocate following lease expirations. The retail real estate firm will assist with all facets of AAMCO's real estate process, from site selection all the way through helping franchisees with their lease negotiations, R.J. Brunelli reports.

The chain is seeking 4,000-square-foot to 6,000-square-foot spaces with 16-foot ceilings, zoned for automotive use. Freestanding locations are preferred, but the chain will consider shopping center end-caps that offer the ability to install bay doors and at least six lifts, according to R.J. Brunelli Account Manager Joseph Amecangelo, who is co-directing the AAMCO account with Account Manager Patti Fiore.

Fiore says that R.J. Brunelli will assist with site selection in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic markets within a five-hour drive of its New Jersey office. Outside that area, it will work in concert with affiliate brokers who are part of the national Realty Resources network, as well as independent brokers in those areas that are not covered by Realty Resources members. “In all cases, R.J. Brunelli will be the initial direct contact with the franchisee and manage the overall process under the direction of AAMCO's real estate department,” she adds.

“Retaining a national brokerage firm relieves our corporate real estate department of the day-to-day footwork required to search nationally for real estate for our franchisees and also streamlines the process,” says Marybeth Mack, AAMCO real estate support specialist. “Streamlining this process with a single point of contact allows us at the corporate level to concentrate on personalizing our relationships with the individual franchisees once the zone or relocation request is established and to assist them from initiation of site search to opening, rather than focusing solely on the search.”

R.J. Brunelli has already brokered real estate deals through lease execution for AAMCO total car care centers in East Brunswick, NJ and Glen Burnie, MD, with leases out for signature on six other locations, and 11 additional deals in various stages of negotiations, the brokerage firm states. AAMCO Transmissions, Inc., a subsidiary of American Driveline Systems, Inc., has approximately 700 automotive centers throughout the United States and Canada.