Fehrer Automotive: Twelve Years, One Landlord, and a Building That Doubled
Fehrer Automotive, a global supplier of automotive seat foam, signed a 10 year lease with The Hollingsworth Companies in Gadsden, Alabama in December 2009. Over twelve years the building grew from 238,000 to 491,000 square feet, the lease was restructured around Fehrer's business cycle multiple times, and the company grew roughly 400 percent.
At a glance
| Client | Fehrer Automotive |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive seat foam; one of the largest employers in Etowah County, Alabama |
| Location | Gadsden, Alabama |
| Building | 238,000 SF initially, expanded to 491,000 SF |
| Relationship | Initial 10 year lease December 2009; additional space added September 2012; sub-lease accommodated 2015; renewed and extended to a 15 year term in 2018; expansion ribbon cutting 2021 |
| Lease structure | Adapted over time with flat rent periods, rebates, and phased rent increases matched to Fehrer's business cycle and capital needs |
| Customers served | Positioned to supply the Volkswagen Group in Chattanooga, later Tesla |
| Outcome | Roughly 400 percent tenant growth over twelve years without changing landlords or leaving the building |
Who is Fehrer Automotive?
Fehrer Automotive is a global supplier of automotive seat foam and one of the largest employers in Etowah County, Alabama.
Fehrer's Gadsden operation supplies seating components to major OEM programs, positioned to serve the Volkswagen Group in Chattanooga and later Tesla. Seat foam is a volume business tied directly to vehicle production schedules, which means the real estate underneath it has to flex when programs ramp, pause, and ramp again.
What did Fehrer Automotive need?
Fehrer needed a landlord that would still be there, and still be flexible, through more than a decade of program ramps, expansions, and capital cycles.
Most industrial case studies end at move-in. Fehrer's story is about everything after. An automotive supplier's space needs do not move in straight lines: a new OEM program can double a footprint requirement, and a capital-heavy tooling year can make rent flexibility worth more than any tenant improvement. That is a relationship problem, not a construction problem, and it can only be solved by an owner who plans to hold the building.
How did The Hollingsworth Companies help?
Hollingsworth grew the building from 238,000 to 491,000 square feet and restructured the lease repeatedly around Fehrer's business cycle, with flat rent periods, rebates, and phased increases.
The relationship began with a 10 year lease in December 2009. Additional space followed in September 2012 on a new 10 year term. In 2015, Hollingsworth accommodated a sub-lease when Fehrer's needs shifted. In 2018, the lease was renewed and extended to a 15 year term. In 2021, an expansion ribbon cutting marked the building's growth to 491,000 square feet. At each step the lease economics were structured around what Fehrer's business needed at that moment, something possible only because Hollingsworth owns its buildings with its own capital and answers to no outside investors on a timetable.
What were the results?
Fehrer grew roughly 400 percent over twelve years in the same location with the same landlord, and the building more than doubled around the business.
The company that builds your building is often not the company that owns it in year five. Much of the industry develops to sell, so the landlord a tenant negotiates with at signing is gone before the first expansion conversation. Fehrer's twelve years in Gadsden show the alternative: one owner, aligned for the life of the lease, growing the building as the business grew. That is what long term ownership is actually worth.
Frequently asked questions
How long was Fehrer Automotive's initial relationship with Hollingsworth?
It began in December 2009 with a 10 year lease that was expanded, restructured, and renewed multiple times, including a 2018 extension to a 15 year term.
How did the Fehrer building grow?
From 238,000 square feet at the start of the lease to 491,000 square feet, with additional space added in 2012 and an expansion completed with a ribbon cutting in 2021.
Will Hollingsworth restructure a lease as a tenant's business changes?
It has, repeatedly. The Fehrer lease was adapted over twelve years with flat rent periods, rebates, phased rent increases, and an accommodated sub-lease, each matched to the company's business cycle and capital needs.
Why does it matter that Hollingsworth holds its buildings long term?
Because the landlord at signing is still the landlord at every expansion, renewal, and hard conversation afterward. Fehrer grew roughly 400 percent over twelve years without changing locations or landlords.