After 36 years in the auto auction business, John Duca, general manager of the Greater Chicago Auto Auction, will retire effective July 1.

“John Duca will be deeply missed by a lot of people in the auction industry,” said Art Soudek, auction manager of the Greater Chicago Auto Auction. “He knows the auction business inside and out, is well-respected in the industry and is an effective leader. It will be hard to replace someone who possesses all those qualities.”

Duca got his start in the auction business when he was very young, in part because of his father, who was in the used car business and was one of the first dealers to register with the Los Angeles Dealers Auto Auction when it opened in 1951.

“I used to hang out at the auction and grew to love it,” said Duca. “I took a job there in the summer of ’65 for extra money and just stayed. They couldn’t get rid of me.”

Duca was promoted to general manager of the Los Angeles Dealers Auto Auction in 1986. Manheim Auctions then transferred Duca to general manager of the Southern California Auto Auction, where he stayed for four years before accepting a position as Greater Chicago Auto Auction’s general manager in 1997.

Duca is a past president of the Western Auto Auction Association and a member of the board of directors of the National Auto Auction Association. He also served as convention chair for the 1999 NAAA convention.

“Manheim Auctions is losing one of its finest leaders, and the auction industry is losing one of the best in the business,” said Darryll Ceccoli, Manheim Auctions’ chief operating officer. “John Duca exemplified the Manheim spirit by making his dealers and his employees his top priority.”

“I consider myself very fortunate to have been able to stay in the auction business this long,” said Duca. “I’m going to miss the fun and excitement of sale day the most. That’s where the action is. Even though I’m retiring, you can bet I won’t stay far away; you can count on that.”

Soudek, who has been with the Greater Chicago Auto Auction since 1987, will replace Duca as general manager.

About Manheim Auctions

Manheim Auctions offers services that impact every stage of a used vehicle’s life cycle. These include transaction, reconditioning and certification services, managed remarketing, end-of-lease term management services, vehicle transportation, dealer floor planning, retail inspection and government auction services. The company also assists auto manufacturers, fleet and lease companies, banks and other financial institutions in selling their used vehicle inventories.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, Inc., Manheim Auctions has been involved in the wholesale automobile auction industry for 56 years. With more than 34,000 employees at its 126 auctions and related businesses, Manheim is a global remarketing organization with 86 auctions in North America and additional operations in France, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

In the year 2000, the company auctioned more than 7.5 million vehicles at its North American auctions.