Jade Southworth and Sergio Edell, owners of Gold Country Classic Cars, are pleased to announce the grand opening of their new showroom, offices, and car museum at 422 Henderson Street in Grass Valley, just two doors down from Prosperity Lanes bowling alley.
The public is invited to a grand opening “cruise-in” event on Friday, September 12 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. with a special ribbon cutting event at 5:30 p.m. at their new location.
“The cruise-in is something that we want to do as a continuation,” Southworth said. “It is sort of a kickoff of who we are.”
Southworth and Edell hope to host a casual cruise-in each Friday night throughout the year, a lot like the gathering of car enthusiasts who meet at Cars and Coffee in front of Daily Donuts on McKnight Way in Grass Valley every Saturday morning.
“We want to help amplify the car culture in this area,” Southworth said. “It is a family friendly, casual place to meet up.”
Southworth and Edell want folks to stop by and meet the staff at Gold Country, and look around their showroom and car museum.
Business hours are Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Along with the car museum which is open to the public, the team at Gold Country buys, sells, trades, and consigns collector vehicles.
Gold Country Classic Cars specializes in all years, makes and models. From pre-war, to post-war, ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s, hot rods, restomods, muscle cars, exotics and more.
Most vehicles have a story to them, such as the past ownership and special features, that is typed up and displayed on the windshield bringing together the car museum vibe.
Gold Country Classic Cars moved their location at the beginning of August, and the team says they are “excited to get in a location that was more public facing.”
They were previously located in the complex known as the Bodhi Hive located on Providence Mine Road in Nevada City.
“Here we can be more community oriented, so setting ourselves up as an auto museum makes for an open showroom and an invitation for anyone to come and enjoy the historical vehicles that are on display, but also for sale,” Southworth said.
With the bowling alley next door, Southworth said that Gold Country Classic Cars would like to partner up to host events together.
“Cars, bowling, food, hanging out,” Southworth said. “I think they go hand-in-hand.”
Edell said that he remembers being exposed to classic cars as a kid, and every Friday night a car club called the Lightning Rods would gather by a McDonald’s near the old drag strip in Fremont.
“They’d be set up with a DJ,” Edell said. “It would be so much fun. Cars from all over the Bay Area would show up… that is what I want to kind of create here. If it wasn’t for that, I don’t know if I would even be exposed to classic cars. It’s important just to create something where young people and families can come and get enthused, to pass on the legacy of being caretakers for these awesome, classic cars.”
“Once you have a love for it, like Sergio (Edell) has found in his life, you just can’t stop it,” Southworth said.
The team of six employees run the office, sales, and detailing work preparing the cars for the showroom.
Not only do they have to make the cars look pretty, they make sure they run great, drive great, and with decades of experience, they know how to list and market vehicles, according to Edell.
Gold Country Classic Cars is looking to partner with local high school career technical (CTE) programs and find student-interns who are interested in learning the business and taking care of the classic vehicles.
Dozens of students have helped out at the annual Roamin’ Angels car shows in recent years and continue to be a valued asset, according to Southworth.
Southworth and Edell are members of the Roamin’ Angels car club, and plan to be at the upcoming Cruisin’ the Pines car show at the Nevada County Fairgrounds on Saturday, September 6 with a donated vehicle to sell.
They have partnered with AnimalSave, a local nonprofit animal rescue organization and hope to sell a 1937 Pontiac Cabriolet that has been turned into a street rod. It was donated by a family member connected with AnimalSave, and it will be for sale with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the nonprofit, according to Southworth.
In the future Gold Country Classic Cars would also like to promote car maintenance and safety by hosting educational workshops for youth or anyone who wants to learn the basics, Southworth said.
Southworth and Edell say that their expansion has been a journey, and after their split from the former partnership at the Bodhi Hive, they are fortunate to establish the business on their own.
“Now we’re able to offer a broader scope of service,” Southworth said. “We really were constantly maximizing that space.”
“It was hard though, too, because it’s a music venue next door, and it’s also hard to run a business with loud music,” Edell said.
At times loud sound checks would be scheduled during business hours, and it wasn’t a big deal, but now the new location is much more accommodating with room to grow, according to Southworth.