Ford of Canada to buy majority stake in driver education company

OAKVILLE, Ont.,- Ford Motor Company of Canada, Limited will acquire a majority interest in Young Drivers, the only driver education company that operates on the world stage, with locations across Canada, the United States and Finland.

"Acquisition of Young Drivers is an opportunity for Ford and its dealers to grow our business by building relationships with consumers during their development as safe drivers. It's an important step on the road to achieving Ford's global vision of becoming the world's leading consumer company for automotive products and services," says Ford of Canada President and Chief Executive Officer Bobbie Gaunt.

Peter Christianson, President of Young Drivers, says: "Ford's leadership in the design of safe vehicles and in raising safety awareness complements my lifelong advocacy for effective driver education. Together, Ford and Young Drivers will spread the safe driving message to many more people in Canada and beyond."

Young Drivers, whose motto is "Your Licence to Survive", provides safe-driving instruction to 51,000 students each year, including 41,000 in Canada, and 10,000 in the United States and Finland. (The company will soon expand to the United Arab Emirates). An estimated 15 percent of Young Drivers students purchase a vehicle within one year of graduation.

Ford of Canada's acquisition of Young Drivers will include:

• Young Drivers of Canada, based in Hamilton, Ont., with 158 franchised driver education centres in seven provinces;
• Young Drivers of America, based in Delaware with 25 franchised driver education centres in four states of the United States.

Upon completion of this acquisition, which is subject to due diligence, Mr. Christianson will remain at the helm of the company.

"This move supports Ford's growth strategies in two distinct ways," says Ford of Canada's Director of Retail Growth and Business Development Dean Tesser.

"We intend to grow this business - and the revenues from it - by expanding it into select markets where the Young Drivers brand will be associated with our dealerships. This strengthens the competitive position of both companies and our dealers. Second, as 90 percent of Young Drivers students are under the age of 30, we will have an opportunity to reach and satisfy an entirely new set of customers for Ford vehicles."

Acquiring a majority interest in Young Drivers is part of a larger plan to strengthen Ford of Canada and its dealers by providing a greater range of automotive products and services. As with recent initiatives in light maintenance and repair centres (Fast Lane) and premium pre-owned vehicles (Quality Certified), Young Drivers permits Ford of Canada dealers to enhance relationships with customers and expand the scope of their business.

Ford of Canada is Canada's longest-established automobile company with three vehicle assembly plants, five manufacturing plants and 577 dealerships located in all provinces. Ford's Canadian operations employ approximately 17,000 people and an additional 22,400 are employed in dealerships.