Novato Toyota Celebrates 50th Anniversary

NOVATO, CA — The 50th anniversary celebration of Novato Toyota, a family-owned and operated dealership, took place Wednesday evening.

To commemorate the occasion, Herb Lakritz, owner and president of Novato Toyota was joined by representatives from the Toyota San Francisco region, Novato Mayor Pat Eklund and Novato City Council members.

Novato Toyota was established in 1966 with a showroom and service center at 7505 Redwood Blvd. In 1984, Lakritz bought the business from Steve Mizel and kept the business at the Redwood Boulevard location. In 1998, Novato Toyota built a new building and showroom at its current location at 115 Vintage Way at Vintage Oaks. The showroom and service center was renovated in 2014 to accommodate more service bays, an updated service lounge, and a larger showroom.

The Lakritz family has kept the business local and many employees have remained with Novato Toyota for decades.

As one of the top local businesses in the city based on tax dollars, Novato Toyota has been very involved in the community over the course of its 50 years in business through support of a variety of causes. In honor of the significant milestone, the dealerships is donating $50 dollar for every new car sold in the month of August to School Fuel, an organization that raises money to fund programs for Novato Unified School District.

Additionally, for the past five years, the Lakritz family has donated a car each year to Marin Abused Women’s Services and the family also hosts regular events for the Golden Gate Labrador Retreiver Rescue at the dealership.