Company History 

In 1873, three brothers, John, Wilhelm, & Joseph Bredemann, immigrated to the United States from Germany and settled in Jefferson City, Missouri.  They were skilled blacksmiths who built wagons for the dairy industry. Two of the brothers decided to stay in Missouri, while Joseph moved to the Milwaukee area to expand their operations.  Five years later, Joseph moved to Chicago and set up operations there.  Wilhelm later joined Joseph in Chicago.

When Joseph was injured and could no longer build wagons, he found work with G.D. Searle selling medicine door-to-door on the north side of Chicago. His son Joseph Jr.  later joined him in the business. 

Joseph Jr. had a summer home in Michigan.  He soon learned that his neighbor was a car dealer in Holland, Michigan. The neighbor asked Joseph if he would be interested in selling cars to his medicine clients in Chicago.  He agreed, and they began shipping cars on a freighter from Holland, Michigan to Navy Pier where Joseph Jr. would deliver them.  He soon became the top salesperson for the Michigan dealer, catching the attention of the Busse family, who owned Buick dealerships in Mount Prospect and later Park Ridge. They contacted Joseph and recruited him to sell for them in Park Ridge.

In a short period of time, Joseph Jr. became the Busse dealerships' top salesperson and eventually became a partner, thus forming Busse-Bredemann Buick.  He eventually bought out the other partners.

Joseph III started working with his father at Busse-Bredemann Buick while he was still in high school.  He started full time in 1950 after military service and college, and worked until his death in February 2014.  The children of Joseph III followed in their father's footsteps, starting in 1978 with Joseph IV, Tom in 1982, son-in-law Steve Travnik  in 1983, Marty in 1986, John in 1990 and his granddaughter Katie (the fourth generation) in 2009.

Most family businesses only last through one generation.  Even fewer become second generation family businesses.  The Bredemann Family of Dealerships not only celebrated their 100th year in business in 2012, but they also have the fourth generation of the family working there.

Our customers' satisfaction is our highest priority.   Being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind and cheerful are the core values we hold ourselves and our employees to.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Joseph Bredemann III was one of the founding members of the Park Ridge Rotary Club and along with his sons has continued to support that organization and hundreds of other civic organizations and local charities including but not limited to:

• Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
• Misericordia
• Breast Cancer Awareness
• Catholic Charities
• A.C. Nielsen Tennis Tournament Sponsor (benefits the North Suburban Special Recreation Association which facilitates programs and services for children and adults with disabilities in local park districts and cities on the North Shore.
• Shore Community Services
• Local elementary and high schools
• Park Ridge, Glenview, & Niles Chambers of Commerce
• Park Ridge Little League Baseball
  

We also have served on the Ethics Committee for the Better Business Bureau.

UNIQUENESS

Our goal is not to be the biggest dealership, but to be the best.  We have a strong commitment to customer service and satisfaction.  Our customers enjoy their dealings with our numerous long-term employees, some of whom have been with the company for over 30 years.

-  We have a tremendous amount of repeat customers over several generations, which is a testament to our commitment to their satisfaction.

-  We always have our customer's best interest at heart.  We strive to give our customers good advice.

 - Our family members are very active and interested in every customer's satisfaction, hence our website, happydrivers.com.

Bredemann History Timeline

1912 - William Busse opens Busse Buick in Mt. Prospect; then adds a second location in Park Ridge in 1924

1925 - Joseph J. Bredemann Sr. begins work at Busse Buick

1948 - Joseph J. Bredemann III (current dealer principal) begins working at Busse Buick

1949 - Joseph Bredemann III buys all outstanding shares of Busse Buick and changes the name to Busse-Bredemann Buick

1976 - Toyota awards franchise to Bredemann which opens at 700 W. Touhy in Park Ridge. Buick dealership remains downtown at 134 Northwest Hwy. in Park Ridge

1990 - Lexus franchise in Glenview awarded to Bredemann. Family purchases Ford dealership in Glenview which is next door to the Lexus dealership to be built

2002- Bredemann signs agreement with General Motors to switch from Buick to Chevrolet and moves Chevrolet and Toyota operations to current Dempster Street location next to Lutheran General Hospital