Northwest Indiana Business and Industry Hall of Fame: The Bosak Auto Group nears a century of sales and service across the Region

“He quit the mills and opened a used car lot in Gary,” Skip Bosak said of his grandfather.

That used car lot, where John Bosak began selling automobiles in 1926, planted the seed that would result in the Bosak Auto Group.

The business’ legacy has continued on to today to include nine dealerships in Northwest Indiana. The Bosak Auto Group is this year’s Enterprise of the Year inductee into the Northwest Indiana Business & Industry Hall of Fame. 

Although no centennial celebration has been firmed up for 2026, the Bosaks will definitely honor its founding and founder.

“It’s a pretty neat milestone. It’s something to look forward to,” Theresa Bosak said of the anniversary.

Theresa, Skip and Greg Bosak are all grandchildren of the late senior John Bosak, and children of the late John “Jack” Bosak II.

Another brother, Cary Bosak, was an integral part of the business until he passed away in November 2021. His siblings credit Cary with being the driving force behind dealership expansions in 2019 and 2020.

“It was definitely a blow to all of us — very unfortunate,” Theresa said of her late brother’s passing.

Joining the Bosak siblings in 2015 was Jed Jordan, 49, who serves as CEO. Although not a member of the family, Jordan fits in easily with the Bosaks and has been an important addition, Theresa, Skip and Greg say.

Greg, 60, serves as president and Skip, 65, and Theresa, 57, as vice presidents.

“We had spent our entire career working with each other and we needed that outside perspective, that extra energy,” Skip said of the addition of Jordan.

“His experience was instrumental to us. … He was willing to say what we were doing wrong and right,” Theresa said.

Greg said he and his siblings all learned most of what they knew about the operation from two people: their father and Uncle Punk.

Jordan, who had worked as general manager at several Illinois dealerships, was able to bring to the Bosak table a “fresh perspective,” Greg said.

“Jed has made me better at what I do,” Theresa added.

And although it was grandfather John Bosak, a coal miner from Pennsylvania, who started the first dealership, it was his three sons, Michael R. “Bud” Bosak, John “Jack” Bosak II and Emmett “Punk” Bosak who continued it and moved the business forward.

After Bud’s untimely death in 1973, Jack moved Bosak Chrysler in a new direction, taking advantage of a burgeoning U.S. 30 corridor to build his flagship Bosak Chrysler in Merrillville in 1978.

Over the years, it’s been a firm belief in how to treat people that remains steadfast, strengthening and continuing through the 1970s and into the 1980s, when the current generation of Bosaks entered the family business.

After Jack Bosak died in 1994, Cary became president and Skip vice president, with Greg assuming control of the newly purchased Bosak Honda. It also was the introduction of Jack’s daughter, Theresa, into the business as vice president.

The Bosak family expanded even further when in 1995 they added a failing Jeep franchise and increased sales 400% over the following three years.

In 2009, the Bosak Automotive Group went on to add Dodge to the Bosak Chrysler Jeep store in Merrillville and then opened a second Honda dealership, in Michigan City, in 2010.

In 2016, Bosak Auto Group bought the Arnell Chevy-Kia dealership in Burns Harbor.

Bosak Chevrolet Buick GMC in Michigan City and Bosak Nissan of Burns Harbor were both brought into the business in 2019.

Additions in 2020 included Bosak Toyota and Bosak Ford, both in Burns Harbor.

The company has some 400 employees, an increase from 280 employees in 2016.

Skip, Greg, and Theresa said they and their brother Cary were all part of the family business early on, working during summers and after school washing and detailing cars and working in sales.

“We did everything,” Skip said.

Of the three remaining siblings, Theresa was the only one who ventured outside the business for a short time.

“I worked in automotive advertising for about seven to eight years, but was eager to get back to the family,” she said.

Figuring out which sibling did what has taken some work, the Bosak siblings admit, but each has found his or her niche. Several years ago the company hired a consultant, and it helped them define their roles and responsibilities.

The consultant also suggested weekly meetings during which each provides informational updates.

“What is unique about us is that we’re not all about individual roles, but we’re about common goals. We’re not about the title,” Theresa said.

All the Bosak grandchildren agree that their grandfather, dad and uncles, if alive, would be pleased with the outcome of the business they started.

“I hope they’d be super proud that this was the seed they planted and their lessons and the culture they created is what we try and emulate with our employees,” Theresa said.

She said the relatives who founded the company would be amazed with the technological changes and also proud that the family has continued to give back to the community.

“I wish that they could see this,” Theresa said.

The importance of valuing the customer was something instilled in the siblings by their grandfather, dad and uncles.

Customers, like Mary-Carol Puntillo of Chesterton, have been sold on the Bosak brand since purchasing the family Honda minivan back in the 1990s.

“It was the ‘cool’ car to get,” Puntillo said.

Since then, her family, including her now adult children in their 20s and a sister, have purchased more than 10 cars from Bosak dealerships, Puntillo said.

“When you walk into their dealership it is the same outstanding culture. They are honest and knowledgeable people,” Puntillo said.

Her son, who lives in the northern suburbs of Chicago, always returns to Northwest Indiana to get his recently purchased Honda serviced.

And a daughter, who lives in Texas, called Theresa asking her input on the best dealerships in the Dallas area.

“I’m just so impressed with the Bosaks and the empire they have built. … We love the Bosaks,” Puntillo said. “You trust them when you walk into the dealership. They listen and respect me.”

As to whether there will be a fourth generation member leading the family business, two of Greg’s sons, Nick and John, are both working for it now.

And family members don’t just automatically join the company but have to work another job somewhere else for at least two years to develop skills, Theresa said.

“No one is born to the business,” she said.

The Bosaks also give special credit to their mom, Barbara Bosak, 93, who didn’t work in the dealership business but ran a tight ship on the home front.

“Her honorary title is chairman of the board,” Theresa said.

As to any future expansion, all agree that they aren’t saying a definite yes or a definite no at this time, since growth has been so fast in recent years.

“Maybe if the right opportunity comes about at the right time,” Theresa said.

Greg Bosak added: “Our main focus is to get better at what we do. We’ll remain flexible but not actively seeking expansion.”

One of the main goals of the Bosak Auto Group is to have a diverse portfolio of domestic cars and imports, a goal that has been met, Skip said.

“Now we need to hone it in,” he said.

When it comes to the future of electric cars, “they aren’t going away,” Greg said, adding, “we’re committed to offering our customers what they want.”

Still, the trend at Bosak dealerships has been the sale of hybrid cars rather than fully electric vehicles.

“The biggest problem is lack of infrastructure,” Skip said in regard to the slower electric car sales.

All agree that those customers purchasing the electric cars tend to be those driving short distances and not using that mode of transportation for longer road trips.

“Sales of cars are customer and not government driven,” Skip said.

Giving back to the community was something that was important to the Bosaks that started the company and is still important today.

The Bosaks credit the many areas in which they have given back to Northwest Indiana through the years, and continue to give back, including educational programs, athletic programs, community centers and to those who serve and protect to name a few.

“We were taught to leave a place better than you found it and it’s important we give back,” Theresa said.

Greg added: “The communities have been good to us.”