The year was 1991. 

The location - 11th Street, also known as Route 66.  

 In a modest building between Utica and Lewis, previously occupied by Siggi Grimm Mercedes, Jack Cooper and Greg Kach began Jackie Cooper Imports of Tulsa.  The new dealership offered Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Nissan and preowned vehicles plus automotive service to Tulsans.

 Jack Cooper was already well-known in Oklahoma City as a successful car dealer and active community leader.  Many credit Jack and his wife Barbara with making the annual Red Tie AIDS benefit one of the city's most successful benefits and a model for other fundraisers, including Tulsa's Red Ribbon.

 Greg Kach, like Jack, grew up in the car business.  Greg's father was a car dealer in Duluth, Minnesota.  In 1986 Greg's career path took him from Duluth to San Diego.  While there at Hoehn Motors, he met his wife Connie, an Oklahoma native who introduced him to Jack Cooper.

 Within just a few years, the operation was bursting at the seams.

The showroom was only large enough to display five vehicles.  The parts department had inventory scattered among three nearby, rented buildings and the conference room had been sliced up into offices, most hardly large enough for a desk and single chair.

February 12th, 1998

Mayor Susan Savage declared it "Jackie Cooper Imports Day in the city of Tulsa," and dignitaries gathered to break ground in a grassy field north of the Creek Turnpike.

Double-digit increases in new and used car sales, as well as steady volume increases in service business dictated the move south. The planned facility was a 72,000 square foot building situated on eight acres.  It would feature five showrooms, over 40 service bays and sufficient on-site storage to warehouse the dealership's entire parts inventory. Each connecting showroom was designed showcase a separate manufacturer and be easily accessible to shoppers

July 1998

Even hotter than a Tulsa summer was the news in 1998 that Jackie Cooper Imports would soon be Tulsa's exclusive Infiniti dealer.  Crowds gathered at Harwelden for the unveiling of the all-new 1999 Infiniti G20.

October 1998

A long-time interest in offering customers the Porsche line of sport cars became reality in late 1998.  Jackie Cooper Imports acquired Tulsa's exclusive Porsche dealership franchise as the well-recognized, upper-end European sports car manufacturer reported double-digit sales increases during its 50th anniversary year.  With the introduction of the new Boxster and 911 the North American Porsche market was growing, as was Jackie Cooper Imports.  The company employed 80 individuals and construction of the southeast facility was progressing.

APRIL 1999

April 25th was a cold, rainy day but the weather didn't dampen enthusiasm as employees and family members loaded up in rented school buses to shuttle from 11th Street to Memorial Drive back to back to 11th Street.  One-by-one each vehicle in inventory was driven to the company's newly completed southeast Tulsa location.  It was a much-anticipated event for the Tulsa business. 

While at 2007 East 11th Street, Jackie Cooper Imports had grown to become an authorized dealership for Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, and Nissan.   With the move south the business formally became an authorized Infiniti dealership.

The move nearly tripled the size of the dealership, making it possible to expand product lines and car inventories.  It also greatly enhanced service operations by nearly doubling the number of service bays and consolidating parts inventory under one roof.  Architects on the project were Michael Dwyer and Wayne Alberty of A / D Group. The cost of the new facility was over $3 million.  Staffing reached 98 people, compared to approximately 70 at the time building began.  More increases were on the horizon. 

A grand opening celebration at the new location was held in July and attended by several hundred customers and friends.    

NOVEMBER 2001 TO NOW

Within three years sales and product line expansion dictated more construction to provide larger showrooms for Porsche and Volvo.  As customers, vendors and media gathered for the groundbreaking on November 1st, Mayor Bill LaFortune's representative Karen Keith read another proclamation declaring it Jackie Cooper Imports Day in the city of Tulsa.  

Less than two years later, in a grassy field three blocks south and west of the Cooper campus October 20th was proclaimed by Mayor LaFortune to be Jackie Cooper Nissan Day as golden shovels were used to break ground for a 25,000 square foot sales and service facility.  The building was completed in the fall of 2005 by Stava Construction.  

In January 2008 Jackie Cooper Imports opened smart center of Tulsa on the Imports campus.  In late 2010, the Porsche showroom was remodeled and construction began on the Mercedes Autohaus.  The Autohaus significantly increased the original Mercedes sales and service areas and added many amenties. It, too, was constructed by Stava and opened in spring 2011.  An opening celebration attracted 600 guests.

Each step of the journey is a move forward for Jackie Cooper Imports. We are very pleased to had the opportunity to serve Tulsa for over 20 years and look forward to many more years to come.