Former Denver Bronco quarterback John Elway said today that the end of his licensing agreement with AutoNation Inc. will allow him to re-enter the market with his own auto dealerships.
While he did not offer specifics on his plans, Elway said during a media briefing that the split with AutoNation was mutual and allows more him the freedom to use his name on his own dealerships in the Denver market.
“Economically, it was better for me not to license my name to AutoNation because it kept me out of the market,” Elway said. “If I wanted to get back into the market and own my own stores, I can do that with my name. If I did not do that, then I could have the stores, but I couldn’t use my own name.”
Elway started in the auto business in 1989 while still quarterbacking for the Denver Broncos. He sold his five dealerships to AutoNation in 1997 and has since licensed his name to the company for use on its Denver-area dealerships.
AutoNation announced last week that it was parting ways with Elway and would rebrand its dealerships as “Go” this month.
Elway did not offer specifics on his intentions today, but said he is not bound by non-compete agreements with AutoNation.
“There are some opportunities out there. I don’t know if I’ll ever do them, but I wanted the opportunity to be able to do so,” he said.
Staff writer Kristi Arellano can be reached at 303-954-1902 or karellano@denverpost.com.
