O’Reilly Auto Parts opening 1st store in Puerto Rico

Missouri-based auto parts retailer O’Reilly Auto Parts is opening its first store in Puerto Rico, on Route 2 in Hatillo, this media outlet learned.

The store is in close proximity to two other auto parts stores that it would be competing against: Pep Boys and Advance Auto Parts.

News is my Business reached out to the company and it had no comment, said Mark Merz, vice president of investor relations, financial reporting and planning.

Consequently, there is no information yet available on when the store will open, how many jobs it will create, the investment in that property, and if there are plans for more store openings throughout Puerto Rico.

O’Reilly Auto Parts is a publicly traded company and it has not spoken on any type of expansion into Puerto Rico yet. It will release results or its second quarter at the end of this month.

According to information about the project filed at the government’s Permits Management Office, the store spans a little more than 10,300 square feet and occupies a former freestanding Walgreen’s location across the avenue from the Plaza del Norte mall in Hatillo.

“The majority of our growth involves new construction of freestanding stores on real estate we own. However, we also consider build-to-suit, ground lease or building lease options,” the company said in its website’s real estate information page.

The project owner is registered in the Puerto Rico State Department as OPA Puerto Rico LLC and lists most of O’Reilly Auto Parts top management as administrators.

O’Reilly Auto Parts was founded in 1957 as a single store in Missouri and has grown into a business consisting of 5,512 stores in 47 U.S. states and 21 stores in Mexico and more than 80,000 team members, according to information the company has posted on its website.

Detalles del autor

• Detalles del autor

Michelle Kantrow-Vázquez

Detalles del autor

Reportero de negocios con 30 años de experiencia escribiendo para periódicos semanales y diarios, así como para publicaciones especializadas en Puerto Rico. Entre mis antiguos empleadores se encuentran Caribbean Business, The San Juan Star y Puerto Rico Daily Sun, entre otros. Mis áreas de especialización incluyen las telecomunicaciones, la tecnología, el comercio minorista, la agricultura, el turismo, la banca y la mayoría de los demás segmentos de la economía de Puerto Rico.

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