It all began in 2002...

With the addition of the new facility for the Volkswagen and Audi franchises opening on Sept. 30, 2010, the New River Auto Mall is a group of eight automobile dealerships with 12 franchises in Hardeeville/Bluffton area, centrally located between Hilton Head Island and Beaufort, S.C, and Savannah, Ga. Established in 2002, it all began with a Letter of Intent from Infiniti, which granted Don Mealey the Infiniti franchise, provided he found suitable land. Mr. Mealey had spent his career as the owner of several car dealerships in Orlando, Fla., and was looking for a new opportunity.

Infiniti & Nissan came first... 

   Mr. Mealey and his partner, Warner Peacock, spent more than a year scouting sites to locate the Infiniti brand. Along the way, he discovered that the Nissan dealership in Beaufort could be purchased, and received permission from Nissan (Infiniti's parent company) to relocate the franchise from Beaufort to the Hardeeville/Bluffton area. He purchased the Nissan Car Mart on Aug.1, 2001, and operated the business there for about a year.

     With two franchises "in hand," Mr. Mealey and Mr. Peacock began to look for larger parcels of land, and met the owners of the New River Center, a mixed use development along Highway 278, including the land where Super Wal-Mart is now located. Mr. Mealey and Mr. Peacock convinced the owners and Jasper County that the Auto Mall concept was an appropriate use for the land, and an agreement was reached. They purchased land for Infiniti and Nissan, constructed new facilities, and opened both during the last quarter of 2002.

Mazda, Porsche and others followed...

    Mr. Mealey and his investors were awarded the Mazda franchise in 2003, and built the facility to its corporate design for opening in 2004. Following suit, Porsche had its official opening in first quarter of 2005.

    Other dealers became interested in the Mall, and land was sold to the Jaguar Dealer from Charleston for the Jaguar Dealership. Mr. Mealey and his investors purchased the Jaguar dealership about 18 months after it opened.

    Land was sold to another dealer for the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Hyundai dealerships in 2003. Mr. Mealey and his investors then purchased those dealerships in August of 2006. Land Rover Hilton Head Savannah, located just down the road on S.C. 170, was purchased in April of 2007. Land Rover then integrated into the Auto Mall in January of 2008, merging with the existing Jaguar dealership, to become the all-new Jaguar Land Rover Hilton Head.

Management and Ownership Change?

   Effective Jan. 1, 2007, Mr. Mealey, Mr. Peacock and their partners, reorganized their ownership interests in the New River Auto Mall dealerships under a holding company, NRAM Holdings, LLC. At that time, Mr. Peacock, a partner of Mr. Mealey's and a veteran of the retail automotive dealership business in Orlando, became President and CEO of all of the dealerships and NRAM Holdings, LLC. Robert M. Kisselback (Bobby), also a veteran of the retail automotive business from Orlando who was affiliated with Mr. Peacock and Mr. Mealey there and in Tallahassee, became of the Executive Vice President and Executive General Manager for all of the New River Auto Mall dealerships and NRAM Holdings, LLC.

Potential for more dealerships...

    NRAM Holdings, LLC owns six acres of prime undeveloped land fronting on 278 at the western entrance of the New River Auto Mall. They continue to pursue additional franchise(s) that could located on the remaining parcel(s). 
    NRAM Holdings, LLC's shareholders include President and CEO Warner Peacock, Don Mealey, future Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr., and Orlando attorneys Greg Humphries and Jay Brennan.