Multi-million-dollar investment
latest for Pell City Ford dealership
Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by Mackenzie Free
When Town & Country Dealer Principal and CEO Steve Watts and Partner Bill Sain bought Pell City Ford back in 2009, they saw potential. Today, as they look out over the 13-acre campus, they see they were right.
What began with 19 employees, a 9,000-square-foot new car showroom, service center and a lot for used cars and trucks is now a sprawling series of state-of-the-art complexes providing a comprehensive range of services.
From new and pre-owned vehicles to a massive QuickLane service area, to a vehicle customization center to service bays for commercial vehicles, you might say Town & Country has come a long way since those early days. And you would be right.
In June, executives cut the ribbon on their newest addition, the 36,000 square foot headquarters for TC Customs and a service center for commercial fleets with the ability to lift heavy equipment vehicles up to 25 tons.
The $16 million investment means additional electric vehicle charging stations, more than doubling the service bays available to 48 and pushing employment numbers to the 100-mark.
“We’ve come a long way,” said General Manager Doug Bailey, noting the support of Pell City and St. Clair County, St. Clair Economic Development Council. “Everybody pitched in to help us become successful.”
“This is a great event,” added Mayor Bill Pruitt. “Town & Country has been a longtime partner of the Pell City family. They continue to pour investment into our community. We appreciate everything they have done and the continued investment.”
TC Customs is a vehicle customization center specializing in Ford vehicles, like Broncos, but works on all makes and models. It features 29,000 different wheels for custom wheels and leveling, lift and lowering kits for vehicle suspensions, exhaust systems from the top names in the business, bed covers and more. As they say, “If you can dream it, we can build it.”
It’s not the first expansion in Town & Country’s history under Watts and Sain. In 2017, they replaced the existing dealership and repurposed it to preowned vehicles, some servicing, new and used inspections, heavy engine work, cleanup and detailing.
That made way for a 27,200 square foot expansive glass showroom, LED features and halo digital graphic accent lighting.
Waiting areas with tables are equipped with iPads for games and movies and large screen monitors are strategically located for viewing.
QuickLane headlines its massive service center offering parts and service for all makes and models of cars, trucks and SUVs.
Before cutting the ribbon, officials noted that the successful road to this point resulted from teamwork. They announced national awards won by the management and staff, and they thanked City of Pell City, St. Clair County and St. Clair County Economic Development Council for their support over the years.
Goodgame Company of Pell City built the expansion facility.
