Internet Car Lot

The problem of pre-reg...

2012-01-21T04:25:00.000-08:00

Pre-registration. A motor trade term which strikes fear into the heart of every franchised sales manager in the land. Despite the stifling effect this process has on a dealer, the bonus payments are just too important to banks and budgets to be ignored.

With two weeks left of any quarter, a sales manager will know their registration projection, achievement and target better than the birthdays of their nearest and dearest.

It is no blessing to find yourself on or ahead of target with two weeks left. You then become a target of the manufacturer for over-achievement. The only positive aspect of pre-registration in this situation is that you do hold the cards in the negotiation. It is likely some hefty bonus payments will be offered, just how weighty will depend on your brand and product availability.

If you find yourself a little short, your next resource to be plundered is demonstrators and service loan cars. Three months feels like an eternity to wait when you know there are a dozen registrations waiting for you. However, whilst the new flock may be delivered with haste, the returning tribe are not as welcome - especially for those suffering meagre write down allowances.

The worst position is to find yourself a long way short. Through a combination of poor performance, over targeting and product availability, I have been in this position more times than I would like. Therefore I do have a few tips for those who find themselves in that sticky situation:

1/ Cheapest is not always best. You may have a lead in car at £6995 but at £5995 a customer will more often than not choose the new car option.

2/ Avoid the crowds. Don't pick models that the dealer twenty miles down the road will have. The internet savvy customer (pretty much everyone) will use this to beat you down on price.

3/Blow them out the door. Forget trying to hold on to every penny, the longer they lurk the bigger the problem.

4/Still sell new. Do not beat the salesman who could not convert a new car prospect, the easiest way to avoid the same problem next quarter is to complete the task early.

Autotrader Follow Up Piece for Car Dealer Magazine

2011-09-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

'As a follow up to my stinging article in the July issue of the magazine, I recently had a meeting with a regional director of Autotrader.

The fact that senior figures within Autotrader were prepared to engage in anything other than rudimentary business calls is a credit to the company, but the meeting did nothing more than highlight why the majority of car dealers are so unhappy.

Our disagreement focused on the current pricing structure and the perception of value. Autotrader say that their figure of around £9 a week per car is excellent value compared to spending £100 a week on a regional press title or in my case the cost of a used car display area. They also argue that a number of pricing and analytical tools are available to me, they have the highest amount of unique visitors AND I have a 'trusted advisor' (tossy corporate speak for a rep) to visit me and talk through my needs.

The visit also involved the introduction of a 'customer charter'. 'We want to hear your feedback so that we can improve our service, very much like the Natwest initiative'.

During the last 18 months Autotrader have made significant steps in customer service. The portal is excellent, customer interface has become more efficient and the people are pleasant.

I used to fly with British Airways but rarely do today. I liked the fact that I had a seat, that the cabin crew were polite and professional and they had an excellent safety record. What budget airlines did was strip the offer down to the base level but the product remained the same. Now I find it very difficult to justify the difference.

'But BA had a good year last year' said the director when I used this analogy.

My prediction is not that Autotrader will cease to exist - I still have an account albeit reduced - but like BA they will lose their market position. It is not enough to assume that service and market dominance will ensure the success of any company. I am happy to pay more for Autotrader than I would a competitor as I accept their current position as market leader but not ten times as much.

The irony of the introduction of a customer charter should not be lost on anyone. Every dealer in the land is screaming for a reduction in price but will they listen?

False economy in this economy - Latest Car Dealer Magazine Piece

2011-08-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

For the last year, more than half of my enquiries have been from people looking to swap their existing car for one of mine or have been looking for cash back.

There is no doubt that rises in insurance premiums and regular increases in road tax have forced many to look hard at the cars they own and seek a change. A recent RAC report claimed that over a third of all motorists had reduced the use of their car due to the price of petrol.

Whilst it is a natural step to want to change your car to reduce some of these costs, for many people the logic of this process is flawed. I am constantly hearing of deals where a low mileage user chops in a perfectly serviceable petrol car for a new diesel to save themselves £100 a year on tax and gain 15mpg. However, the actual outlay of five figures plus interest if financed seems to escape their attention.

Most of the swap deals I am offered are against my 'part exchange to clear' cars. Some customers think it is in their best interest to swap a 50k petrol family hatchback for a 120k small diesel car with no regard whatsoever to the actual cost of annual maintenance.

Maintenance too is an area where people try to cut corners. How many people have stopped the routine service of their vehicle? How many cambelts are being replaced in this climate and if so with how many water pumps? The ostrich approach is common yet consequences are financially catastrophic when something goes wrong. Many of these cars are seen limping their way into dealers with the idea of passing the problem.

So far the reduction in vehicle parc has managed to delay the reduction in residuals of less efficient cars but there are signs things are starting to change as evidenced by last months book drop. At what point the cost difference starts to encourage buyers back these cars in big numbers remains to be seen but there are some great buys out there for the canny individual...

Autotrader - The frustrations continue...

2011-08-01T00:47:00.000-07:00

For the last fifteen months I have been in regular contact with Sharon Randall. Sharon is the sales director of Trader Media Group, the company that owns Autotrader.

I had become exasperated with continual rate rises and lack of regional representation. I have often felt that in order to achieve results from a complaint, talking to the most senior person possible in a constructive and fair manner is the most effective way.

During our initial conversation I questioned whether multiple rate increases were justified given the current economic climate, particularly in the retail motor trade. I explained that to me as a dealer, Autotrader were just the means in which I broadcast my current stock to the country and that in essence all they had was a great domain, some servers and patented search system. Couple this with the fact that major competitors were offering to display the same number of cars for around 90% less.

I also explained that having spoken to many of my friends who had independent dealerships, I was not alone in my frustration. Another important factor I discovered in my conversations with fellow dealers was the reverence in which Autotrader was held. With the development of internet enquiries, many felt that despite continual lack of service and price rises, to leave Autotrader was too risky.

Naturally Sharon was defensive citing recent technical developments, strong user numbers and brand credibility.

During the same period I received a letter from another TMG company Auto-trade Mail outlining a 10% increase in their monthly subscription. When I called their sales manager to ask why given a huge increase in subscriber numbers and lack of product development, I was told 'because we have not put the price up for a few years'.

Six months later and the only thing that had changed for the positive was the regular contact from a very capable regional sales person. Another rate increase was looming, business was still slow and those feelings of angst that had temporarily disappeared under the surface began to rear their ugly head yet again.

So I put another call in to some dealers, to my regional representative and to Sharon.

This time some of the dealers were starting to act. Only a handful were doing nothing, many were reducing spend and a couple were leaving altogether.

I decided to reduce my spend from 35 cars to 10 which was is the minimum number allowed in order to gain full account facilities. My rep was disappointed but not surprised. She told me how she was having difficult conversations on a daily basis with dealers who were fed up with the continued arrogance of Autotrader. She told me that whilst she was unable to effect any kind of offer to change my mind, a special team had been employed at head office to try and recover lost dealers with reductions. I could not believe that a regional sales person had been given no ability to try and negotiate a better package.

I spoke to Sharon, we had another very similar conversation where her defensive weapons of technical development, user numbers and brand were employed but this time with little effect.

Sharon maintained that the development of mobile platforms (iPhone apps and the like) were the future and these developments had to be paid for. I argued that most dealers only view Autotrader as a search portal, no different to countless others. Customers are aware that many popular listings companies do not have mobile apps so whilst it maybe convenient for someone to find a car on an iPhone, the search does not end there.

She told me that the user numbers of both mobile and traditional platforms were much stronger than those of competitors. I argued that web statistics can be engineered for any purpose and that the only thing that mattered to me were deals not internet views.

She remonstrated that the Autotrader brand was by far the strongest and that dealers were paying for quality. I argued that a company who believes they have the strongest brand and that their pricing structure is value, do then not employ a team of telesales people to undermine the position of their regional counterparts with offers and discounts.

In February this year a dealer from Bath started the Motor Traders Advertising Union. I had absolutely nothing to do with the organisation but I welcomed it. Whatever their motive and regardless of their success, it provided evidence given the overwhelming support they garnered that dealers were taking action. MTAU galvanised negative opinion and forced Autotrader to act.

I had a phone call from my rep shortly afterward telling me there was a 50% reduction on all additional stock until July. This brought the average cost per vehicle back to a level which I felt comfortable with.

I spoke to Sharon again. I told her I was pleased that Autotrader were taking action and that in July I was hoping to see a revised pricing structure that would allow dealers to either come back or at least maintain higher stock levels.

I had a phone call from my rep this week. There is to be no revised structure. The deal has finished and that is that. She sounded desperate on the phone, she told me if she found another job tomorrow she would be gone. Having eighteen months of dealers lambasting would test anyone.

I read in June that the owners of TMG had refinanced the company to raise £280m for a special dividend. It means the company has taken on more debt and is more dangerously leveraged. When I read this my heart sank. Sharon is just a puppet, when private equity groups run companies they look for nothing more than a return. Years of customer relationships, staff morale and shared visions mean nothing when interest and dividends have to be paid

Survival of the fittest...

2011-08-01T00:45:00.000-07:00

We are now in the second half of 2011 and what can I tell you? Well, the market is tough but you already knew that. At no point have I seen a market with so many variables out of dealer control to adversely affect the market. Exchange rates, natural disasters, low consumer confidence, dwindling used car parc, increased raw material prices and many others conspire to make these the most challenging trading conditions I have seen in my thirteen year motor trade life.

Being brutally honest over Christmas I almost threw in the towel. I spent two months over the winter looking hard at what I want out of life and came to the conclusion that I love this job, I love my business and it will not beat me.

After the Beijing Olympics I heard the team manager of Britain's dominant cycling team talk about how they had achieved success in a sport which does not have huge media exposure, has relatively small participation and limited investment. The essence of his reply was that they looked at every single process and aspect of what the team did. From diet to the material of their uniforms. They found that if they could improve by just one percent in every area, the collective result would be enough to be the best

in February I examined every aspect of everything I do. From where I source my cars to how I use Twitter. From where I get my fuel to how I interact with my local community. What I found was there were many areas which required improvement and I set about setting goals to try and measure the impact of my actions.

Whilst this has not suddenly meant I am challenging Lakshmi Mittal as the country's richest man, it does give me the confidence that I can steer a course through choppy seas until things improve.

I would urge you to do the same. Simply reducing costs is not enough. Analyse everything and I mean everything. Also bear in mind that for every positive action there will be a negative reaction. For example, deciding to stop your branded number plates will mean a lack of advertising and awareness which these can provide. Starting a Facebook group which is poorly managed can be detrimental to your image.

I cannot predict what will happen in the next twelve months but I do know that Charles Darwin might have been on to something...

Training is not draining...

2011-06-21T09:34:00.000-07:00

There is no doubt in my mind that one of the biggest weaknesses affecting the retail motor trade is a lack of training and coaching.

Most dealers rely solely on the mandatory training enforced upon them by their respective manufacturers. Whilst this source of knowledge is often useful - particularly in product terms - it does little to develop individuals and encourage personal development.

There are some dealers who are over dependent on the use of external consultants. There are some excellent external trainers available, many of whom add value to a business when employed in the right areas at the right times but to diminish the training and coaching responsibilities of dealer management employees demonstrates a lack of faith in their ability to develop people.

To me it starts from the board level down. Directors and dealer principles must work with their managers to achieve budgets. I have seen senior managers who can hardly read a set of financial reports, let alone deduce the impact in a management context. Many senior managers who come from a sales background do not understand the after sales side of the business and vice versa. It is no sign of weakness to want to improve in these areas.

Many department managers are employed due to being very proficient as sales managers, workshop controllers or parts salespeople. However when it comes to heading up a team of other individuals, they can often enforce the style that saw their own success even though this may not work for other people in the team. Greater consideration has to be given and individual training and processes developed.

Good operational employees often know what to do to be successful but they do not understand how or why they are doing it. I have seen sales people insist on a customer taking a test drive even when it is clear the customer has been through the process somewhere else and just wants to deal. Of course experience teaches you these things but good management can hasten the development.

The best advice I can give anyone who has to manage, train or coach people is watch, listen and act. Clear objectives and individual attention to the training needs of each member of your team will result in better performance and greater workplace morale.

Pioneering for profit...

2011-05-19T13:31:00.000-07:00

I like to think of myself as something of a pioneer. Back in 2001 I was the sales manager for a start up Saab dealer. Saab had a very sharp used car manager who awoke me to the possibilities of used cars on the internet. He had developed a basic excel spreadsheet which imported data from Saab's used car management system and it allowed you to monitor your prices for similar vehicles against other dealers in the network. 'If I were you' he said 'I would be £100 cheaper than your nearest rival and you will get incremental business'.

So that is precisely what I did. In my first two years before I left for BMW we had it away. There were very few people embracing the technology in this fashion, instead preferring to opt for what appeared to be more lucrative and a a less price sensitive local market. The benefit I had was I worked for a sizeable group in a middling brand so I was lucky to have a powerful cheque book at my disposal. Saab was a brand (probably still is to some degree) where sellers are happy to get a bid on late plate cars so I was able to buy effectively and still maintain my budgeted margin.

However, like all good things it came to an end. I left for BMW and there I found a group of similarly plugged in operators who were exercising a similar strategy. Gradually more and more people saw this process as the route for success which naturally undermined the whole concept as prices were forced down in an attempt to control the market. I modified my approach and instead focused my purchases on very odd cars, 6er and 5er manual derivatives for example.

Life is nothing if not cyclical and I can see a return to those good old fashioned values. Customers are now wary of buying a car just because it is the cheapest, having travelled long distances only to find a car that has been mis-described or on VCAR. The price of fuel means customers are less likely to drive 100 miles to be disappointed. Dealers are equally wary of distance selling regulations so they too find the lure of being cheap for the sake of it not as strong as it once was.

Change of face not game - The Tesco story...

2011-04-03T05:51:00.001-07:00

So, after months of speculation, it has finally happened. Tesco are taking us on gang and I for one am not worried in the slightest. The talk of Tesco bringing about a revolution in the used car world is nonsense.

Can anyone remember Virgin Cars? Do Chevrolet still sell from Halfords? No. This business is unique.

Tesco is just Carsite rebranded. Carsite operate in a similar fashion to the recently departed Autoquake.

For those who are not aware, essentially Tescocars.com will be a re-marketing channel for leasing companies who are able to return improved residuals on end of contract cars. The benefit to Tesco will be a handling fee but most importantly the opportunity to upsell finance and insurance products.

Customers reserve cars for £99 and can either collect from a regional centre or have them delivered for £149 anywhere in the country.

In theory the process is easy, effective and allows Tesco to tap into the millions of customers they have stored on their database. So why am I not worried?

Primarily the purchase process allows for no test drive, no inspection or no part exchange. Three of the most fundamental parts of the used car buying decision. I know there are descriptions and virtual test drives and this will be good enough for some buyers but enough to change the market? I think not.

People may argue that a customer can sell their car through webuyanycar.com and then buy one from Tesco for an apparent 20% less. So that is 20% less for your part exchange made up by 20% saving.

The used car business has been, is now and always will be about the cars. They are unique, one of a kind. After a week of ownership from new, no two identical cars will ever be the same again. Therefore, Tesco will only ever be as good as their stock which in their case is limited purely to ex lease, Motability returns and daily rentals.

Of course dealers of all types rely on ex Motability or leasing cars but Tesco are only acting as an agent. They are not setting the price. Therefore the prices will only ever reflect what the cars are realising in an auction on any given sale day. Leasing companies do not owe Tesco a living!

Then there is the post purchase experience. I thought the website was a little ambiguous but from what I gather there is a 7 day cooling off period and a 3 month warranty.

If you don't like the car just send it back? Yes, less your £99 deposit plus the delivery fee. Great from a customers perspective but what will leasing companies think when they have had a car returned three times and are still awaiting payment?

You can never understimate the power of being a local garage in a local town. If you have the same car as Tesco (it may even be £250 more), the fact that the person can touch, feel, drive and part exchange their car will be enough to make it a futile exercise.

The 'Tesco Autocentre'. This is another name for a the NSN, a symbol group for a large number of independent garages. There will be no consistency in performance or ability. Some will be good, some will be bad. However, go into any Tesco store up and down the land and the product and service delivery will be the same.

Tesco are taking a massive risk using so many third parties to deliver one product under their priceless brand. The cars have to be great (I have sent a few MFL Direct cars back in two years of being a customer), the price has to be accurate, the models have to be desirable, the car has to have no problems and if and when they do, NSN have to be flawless. If a customer wants to return a car there has to be a no quibble approach. This is what people expect of Tesco but I believe they cannot control enough elements to make it happen.

I do not doubt for one minute that they will sell cars and if I was someone like Motorpoint I would be worried. However there is one thing to remember, any mug can sell cheap cars, Autoquake sold thousands of them. They just made no money, something Tesco historically have been very good at...

Law and Order - From Car Dealer April 2011

2011-03-16T09:11:00.000-07:00

I think the recent signing of legal whizz Lucy is a great coup for Car Dealer. As proven in Big Mike's column last month, we are frequently bombarded with legal challenges as a result of selling cars.

This is nothing new, cars are mechanical items and whilst you rarely see the rust or engine failures of thirty years ago, we are now facing electrical issues that would make the guys at Apple cry. Couple this with the litigious nature of our culture today and 'how to get money back' type guides abound all over the internet, it often makes you wonder why we bother at all.

However, like Big Mike I am a proper dealer. I do not fear the law. When I have an issue with a car I fix it. Simple. If the car is out of the warranty period or the claim is for something which is deemed wear and tear, I make a contribution. I don't have to but whether or not I have a legal obligation to the car, I still have an ethical one.

I have yet to fall out with any of the hundreds of customers we have sold cars to in just over three years. I regularly Google the name of my business and I am not being pilloried on any review site or car forum. I know my local trading standards officer but we have a good relationship and he has no boxes of complaints on his desk with my name on them.

This has to do with the way we prepare cars as much as anything. When I signed off my first approved used car check as a sales manager for BMW, there were a number of advisory items. 'Do them' I said to the workshop controller. 'Crikey, the last bloke would have left them all' he replied. I could never understand this. Why mortgage the future for the sake of a few quid today?

In some perverse way I welcome problems - albeit the small and cheap to repair ones - as it gives me a chance to demonstrate both how competent and professional we are. It may seem like crappy corporate speak but there is no greater opportunity for a customer to become an 'advocate' of the business than when you have demonstrated effective problem management.

There are times when my solutions do not meet the expectations of the customer. I can't give money back at the first sign of trouble. I cannot cover every item on a car with 80k which costs just £3000. In the same way that the law is designed to protect consumers, it is also there to protect us as dealers.

Where have all the heroes gone...

2011-02-14T08:03:00.000-08:00

'There is a positive adjective which you rarely see in any other industry which is very motor trade specific. 'Proper'. I do not think I have seen Wayne Rooney described as a 'proper' footballer or Snoop Dogg described as a 'proper' rapper. I would however describe all the people that I admire and respect in the motor industry as 'proper'.

Proper in a motor trade context means someone you can trust who acts with honour and integrity, someone who will help you out when you need a favour and most importantly of all, knows how this business works.

Unfortunately, there appears to be a worrying declining trend in the proliferation of these people. The first time I realised there was a change of mentality was when dealers stopped taking cheques from each other. I don't blame a business for protecting their interests, I look to those individuals who bounced a cheque on someone, did not settle a finance agreement or were funding cars that did not belong to them. What happened to honour amongst thieves?

It has now perforated even more trivial aspects of the trade. How many of you have collected a car from another dealer only for it to be mis-described? I am not talking about an alloy wheel scuff, one stamp missing in the book or a chip in the screen, I am talking six owners not two, lights on dashboards ('it wasn't like that when I appraised it') and even poorly executed approved manufacturer checks. There is very seldom a positive outcome to any subsequent negotiation, suffice to say it is another dealer or individual you will not do business with again.

The latest evidence in the decline of 'properness' is the advent of electronic used car disposal systems. I wonder how many times I have been used as some kind of fallback position only for a dealer to then try and use your bid to make a profit. I certainly do not have a problem with dealers making a profit, but if a car is not available to buy, do not offer it to me. Use your skill, value the car yourself and good luck. There is also the issue and I hear about it frequently, 'they put the car down to me, someone else rang them up and offered them more money and they sold it to them'. This is not good to hear.

There is also a shortage of 'proper' customers. 'I understand Mr Customer that you are not a motor trade professional but when you are telling me about your part exchange on the phone, I would expect you to tell me about the slippling clutch or missing service history as these are very obvious'. I heard a horror story from another trader the other day about a customer who wanted to return a car due to it needing a new engine, when the warranty company investigated, they found the car had been drained of oil, ran dry and then refilled once it broke.

I know that I am doomed to live in a world where in order to protect yourself and your business that examples like these are only going to become more common but the scary part of all this is I am only 32, how cynical will I be when I am 50...'

Flaming Forums...

2011-02-06T10:22:00.001-08:00

During my motor trade sales apprenticeship, I acquired the affectionate nickname of 'the geek' long before it was cool. This was purely down to the fact that I had been to university whilst my colleagues were alumni of the university of life and would be lucky to scrape a pass.

Back then, a geek was someone who had their name sown into their socks, wore the sort of glasses that could withstand an IED and who actually knew that a Bunsen burner was for something other than setting pencil cases on fire.

However, two years ago I bought a left hand drive Mercedes and I turned into a geek...

My website designer, for the sake of this article I will call him Adam, that is actually his real name so my apologies for the lack of creativity, had introduced me to the world of Google Analytics. 'You can do loads of stuff like checking entry paths to your website, check search keywords, geographical data etc etc' he told me. 'OK mate, will check it out' I replied.

This Mercedes was a minter, 25 years old, one owner, primrose yellow and proper history. Nothing too out of the ordinary but not exactly your every day retail fodder.

Analytics told me that there was a large interest in the car from a large motoring forum and my daily web traffic went bananas. I set up a log in and password to the forum and I officially started wearing trousers which were too short for my shoes.

If you have had no experience of motoring forums, they are like the masonic lodges of the car industry. Code words, inside jokes, regular meetings and special favours abound. I commented on the thread (discussion about a topic) and got absolutely no feedback. So over the next few months I observed, read and occasionally commented on various threads and gradually got to know the terms and inside jokes.

As I got a bit braver I started a couple of threads which were motor trade specific. At this point it is worth confessing to not being a car enthusiast like many. I am a trade enthusiast. As people had seen some of my posts and I was no longer a 'newbie' a few people started to comment, some with good feedback, a few with negative. Nothing I could not handle.

Then I started a thread called 'What planet do some car buyers live on?'. With hindsight this is probably the most incendiary title I could have written. In my OP (original post) I posted an e-mail conversation with a guy who had bid me £1500 off a £6000 car which had gone a little unsavoury. To be fair to the customer, he was as polite as could be before he hammered my twig and giggleberries but I bit and sent him a rather flippant e-mail back. Cue a bit of a slag fest where he questioned my business credentials and I - humble as ever- questioned his human worth.

Anyone who has ever sold cars for a living will hopefully understand the point of my question but the motoring masons did not. In metaphorical terms I was stripped naked, tied on horseback and paraded through the streets of London with the angry townsfolk hurling flaming turnips in my direction. In three days it drove literally thousands of people to my website. All PR is good PR or so they say. Not me, I was close to calling Red Adair to put out the fire.

After about a month and me begging the administrators to take the thread away, I could pick through the embers of what had been my forum life.

It taught me a massive lesson about how we in the trade are perceived and how I must empathise more with each individual car buyer. Just because I have heard 'what is your last price?' a million times this week, to that customer he is spending his hard earned and I must acknowledge and appreciate the opportunity for him to spend it with me....

And the Oscar goes to...

2011-02-06T00:04:00.000-08:00

If you want to see my ugly mug discussing whether car dealers should be engaging in social media then you can do so here:

http://www.cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/video-should-car-dealers-be-using-twitter-and-facebook/48120

Pope to a Dope...

2011-02-01T04:52:00.001-08:00

I don't know about you but I was surprised to see the Pope rocking a converted Mercedes ML during the recent Papal visit. I expected something a little more Motability and a little less pose-ability. Still, if his boss is happy with his company car choice then who am I to question what car he stands up in? I even Google'd 'Popemobile' and saw that the late Pope John Paul used to have a modified Mercedes G Wagen. This latest German incumbant is not waving the patriotic flag for Mercedes, it seems the boys in Stuttgart are the chosen supplier of the Papacy.

It got me thinking about other unusual or unexpected modifications. Who can forget the Renault Espace with the Renault F1 engine rocketing around Silverstone prior to the British GP years ago or any number of Top Gear created specials? There is one converted car which very few of you will have heard about and even less will have see. My mate Bernardo's Vauxhall Chevette.

Bernardo is a free spirit, an enigma if you will. He disappears from the country for years at a time and returns as a new character. One minute a labourer in India, the next a Spanish bus driver. He is like the real life Mr Benn.

Bernardo's Chevette started life as a conventional red saloon. Bernardo however wanted it to have more of an identity. So he opened the shed (his real shed not the Chevette) and took out some tins of black and white paint. Paint brushes in hand, Bernardo painted the doors white, the body black and applied the words 'to protect and serve' on the front wings. That's right folks, Bristol's own LAPD squad car had been born.

A stickler for detail, he even applied a Sherrif's badge on the doors albeit that he chose the Star of David rather than a conventional badge but Bernardo was a multi-faith law enforcer.

The car was seen in the Bristol area for many months, Bernardo came to visit his brother and I (we were room mates) in Bournemouth and took us on a street cruise. People pointed, shouted and waved. One bloke even offered to pay us to take him to his office Christmas party so he too joined the patrol and was the envy of all his mates when he turned up to his hotel.

I will leave you with the best story. Bernardo, like his heroes from the American police dramas, was a flamboyant driver. He announced his arrival at B&Q one day by hand brake turning the car into a parking space. On entry to the store the security guard said 'if you drive like that on the way out I will call the law.''I am the law' replied Bernardo..

NEWSFLASH 01/11/2010

2010-11-01T11:17:00.000-07:00

My blog postings have been picked up on a regular basis by www.cardealermagazine.co.uk under the heading 'Trader Tales' so please help yourself to have a read. Thanks :-)

Sell Cars? No, not me!

2010-07-17T01:25:00.000-07:00

This is an article I wrote which appears on the Car Dealer magazine website (www.cardealermagazine.co.uk).

WHENEVER I am introduced to someone for the first time, I avoid where possible the subject of my occupation…

It is not because I am embarrassed or ashamed of a job I love, it is because more often than not I get told a horror story about a bad car retailing experience that person has suffered.

‘I went into xxx showroom on a Saturday afternoon in a pair of jeans and tee shirt, the salesman looked me up and down and decided I could not afford it so I walked out in disgust,’ or similar is a sentiment most of you would have heard in your careers.

‘I would have bought the car but they would only give me half of what my part exchange is really worth,’ is another well worn gripe.

In all cases I feel duty bound to defend my car selling brothers and sisters with sweeping statements like ‘if you didn’t make an appointment on a Saturday they were probably busy’ or ‘I am sure they would have done the deal if they could’.

However, at the weekend, my best friend asked me to buy a used car on his behalf. He has a specific need for a large German estate and likes to buy with the confidence of a manufacturer backed used car warranty. I located two examples on the manufacturer website and thus moved from gamekeeper to game.

The first choice car had been sold, the salesman took my number in the event that the buyer shed his skin so it was on to number two.

The dealer who owned the second car claim to be a ‘vibrant company with a fresh approach’. I called and asked to be connected to a used car salesman. ‘One moment,’ came the curt reply and that was to be it. The phone rang and rang to the point I had to hang up. I called an hour later with the same outcome.

Undeterred I left an enquiry for the specific car on the manufacturer website. I know what some of these ‘hot’ leads are like. You get everything from brochure collectors, 10 year olds doing their homework and in one extreme case that I experienced, an inmate of the local prison planning which car to buy on his release two years hence.

With this in mind I left a mobile number and a little message – ‘please can comeone contact me urgently about this car’.

Three days have passed and I am still without a call. I feel like Cheryl Cole might if she registered on a dating website with an artistic library photo and the phrase ‘liberal attitude to non committal sex’ only for her to get no interest.

I urge you all to think about your most basic of processes. Can a receptionist take details? What happens if you have a temporary receptionist? Who handles the portal for your web enquiries? How are they distributed? These are hardly challenges to test the boffins of Nasa.

Oh, and for the record, I called on a Saturday and I was wearing jeans…..

Scrappage - Papering over the cracks - Part II

2010-03-12T06:06:00.000-08:00

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Jerry Maguire has to be one of my favourite films of all time. The context is sport which I love, I am not afraid to admit to a man-crush on Tom Cruise and I have huge empathy for the business and human themes which are central to the plot.

'Less is more' should have been the mantra for the motor trade for the last twenty years but sadly corporate big wigs getting fat on the bonus culture have meant a chronic issue of over production.

Unfortunately for the people of motoring towns like Birmingham, Antwerp, Trollhatten and Luton (not to mention Detroit) this issue is now being addressed in a more violent way than anyone could have predicted with job culls in the thousands.

The glutenous nature of the business then manifests itself in retailers. Targets, stretch targets and ad-hoc incentives mean that the primary concern for any dealer is volume. Forget profit retention, forget customer service and quality of business, it is all about the numbers.

Please do not think this is purely a car sales issue. Parts and hours are as important as the very things that start it all off.

As a result the need for space is huge. Bigger showrooms and used car display areas, bigger car parks, more parts storage and administration space and a number of workshop and valeting bays. This leviathon cannot be in any old location, it needs to be in a retail viable space and most importantly, the site needs to be corporate. Manufacturers (most of the time) dictate the architect, builders, design and even the type of chairs you sit on.

To pay for this you need some serious money. The most extreme case is West London Audi which is owned by the Sytner group, no change from £45 million pounds. The majority of retailers are debt funded so are precariously placed when times are hard (as in 2008).

So with scrappage about to end, the question being floated about the trade is 'what are you doing post scrappage?' as though the trade will cease to exist. For some weak dealers this maybe the case.

Like the macro-economic issue of over production, I believe there are many core micro-economic issues that overshadow many franchised dealers ability to perform profitably.

I will deal with these issues on an individual basis in later blog postings.

Autotrader - Where it's going wrong

2010-02-12T04:37:00.000-08:00

I make no secret of my current disliking for the Trader Media Group. Here is the body of the e-mail I recently sent to their sales director:

Who are Autotrader to me?

I should add that I am referring to the digital side of the business, not the magazine.

From what you said to me earlier, I believe some of your colleagues may have lost sight of the pure essence of the company. Essentially you are the means in which I broadcast the cars I have to sell to the public at large. You own nothing more than a domain, some servers and what appears to be a patented search system.

This facility is available to me from a number of your competitors, eBay, motors, carmony, vcars, pistonheads to name but a few.

Where you have an advantage is your branding, your heritage and your technical superiority. This was important to me when I chose your company as a partner for me in 2007 when I started my business.

Where has it gone wrong?

The catalyst for much of my unhappiness comes from a lack of an Autotrader representative for a period of some eighteen months. There is no excuse for this, during this time I spent over £10k and had no relationship with which to speak of.

I cannot recall exactly but I would imagine there has been at least three rate rises within this period. Each time, a colleague of yours in your call centre would explain the new technology which was being launched to mitigate for each increase.

It is important to consider the car market at the time of these increases. We have seen dramatic falls in the number of new car sales which naturally have a knock on effect to the market as a whole. This is without considering the worsening wider economic climate.

Product Weaknesses

When I was asked to comment on the new artwork and beta concept a few months ago, I reported back saying something like 'looks like a five year old has done it'.

When it was launched, the functionality of the site was appalling. How a company like Autotrader can launch a site with so many technical flaws is incomprehensible.

The most concerning part for me was the reaction of the most important people in the whole process, the users. If you have not seen this then I would urge you to look at it:

http://tinyurl.com/y8wrf24

Then there is the new 'technology'.

Launching products like enhanced advert sizes, pay per click and promoted listings is hardly driving the market. I accept BETA is a great product in concept but as referred to earlier, that was not ready at launch.

I do not want to see advertisements for breast enlargement alongside my cars. As lovely as my friend's wife is to look at, I do not want to see any form of advertising next to mine. You are a classified car site, that is what I want to see, that is what customers want to see.

I notice from your latest dealer panel, you expect us to be amazed by telling us we can have a 'fully branded' display if a customer clicks into our car. That is exactly what we should have in the first place.

Cost

I have just used some of my saving in my package reduction by signing up to a 15 car agreement with motors.co.uk. The cost of this is £81.25 + VAT. Autotrader is approximately £500. I cannot confirm exactly as I am waiting for a new invoice.

I can list a car on eBay with nine pictures for 28 days for £12.99 including VAT. Some £150 for fifteen cars, if I sign up for an eBay motors package it would be less.

Can you honestly say you believe Autotrader is worth that much more?

One of my biggest issues is the lack of product flexibility. I cannot use itemised pay per clicks, I cannot chose not to have video, I have to sign up to a specific number of cars. If I had the ability to be more precise with my spend, I might spend more.

Motor dealers are notorious for spending money at advertising as a knee jerk reaction, this used to be done through an advert in the paper but dealers are not using this any more for obvious reasons. Here is a glaring business opportunity for Autotrader to take yet it fails to do so.

Lack of Proactivity

I had a phone call from Vodafone when my contract was close to the end saying that they had reviewed my deal and they had a new one which would save me a lot of money. I now spend a third of what I did but I am still with them. I could have spent a third with O2 or Orange but they kept me on board.

I have been overspending for six months or so, I am sure you have the technology to write reports which isolate dealers in my position but where is the outbound call?

I had been a subscriber to Autotrade Mail since we started in 2007 and was very happy with the product. I received a letter a month ago telling me the cost of the service was increasing by 25%. I asked Laura (sales manager) why, 'because we have not had a price rise for ten years' she replied, 'yes, but what about all the extra subscribers you have now, shrinking margins etc etc'......silence. Exactly the sort of blatant profiteering that we are seeing with Autotrader.

I finally met my local representative some two weeks ago. When I told her that I had heard you had a retention team that was cutting deals to existing customers, she told me she could do nothing about it and had to liase with someone else.

What is her function? As lovely as it is to see a nice girl with a pretty smile asking me what business is like, I am afraid I am too busy to indulge in meaningless chit chat. She said to me 'there is a brick wall up and I can't get over it' during her visit, 'that is because you don't have any ladders' I replied.

The irony of it all

What makes me laugh the most is the new CRM hat that everyone at Autotrader is wearing. You are telling me that I will get monthly visits and reviews and that essentially you want to cuddle me.

The current pricing and product actions do little to reassure me your long term goals include building customer relationships.

You now want to put prices up from March the 1st.

This is not a good start for the new regime......

Scrappage - Papering over the cracks - Part I

2010-01-07T03:40:00.000-08:00

Eighteen months ago, many franchised dealers were left hanging over the financial precipice with only the thinnest of credit lines or reserves preventing their doom. Inevitably there were some casualties and most towns saw at least one familiar dealer face disappear.

The scrappage scheme is forecasted to end next month and unless there is another form of respite, some of the dealers who survived by their fingernails could again be left dangling on the edge.

So why are many in this unfortunate position?

The noughties (I cannot get my head round this expression but for lack of a better term) was the period of excess in all industries and the motor trade was no exception.

Record registration figures, easy credit and a spend culture meant manufacturers of all sizes went on the offensive for market share and it was down to the dealer network to deliver it.

Most franchised dealers are independently owned by groups of differing sizes or in some cases owner drivers. Manufacturers reluctantly get involved in motor retailing but central London locations are often manufacturer owned.

European competition legislation saw a change of margin structure for dealers in the noughties. Whereas in the past a dealer bought a car for a typical wholesale cost of some 15% less than retail, front end margins reduced to between 5-8% with an additional 7% or so subject to both target and dealer standards.

The term 'dealer standards' will cause dealer principles or company directors up and down the land to shudder. Essentially a large operating manual exists for most manufacturers, usually taking the form of an acronym. This 'bible' covers everything from colour of the showroom carpet to how an enquiry is managed.

Using the target and dealer standard payments as a form of carrot, manufacturers encouraged many motor businesses to invest in new premises or redevelop existing sites. Again, examples of this will be evident anywhere across the country.

It should be noted that average returns for dealers had dropped from somewhere like 10% in the 1990's to around an average of 2%. Porsche retail consistently led the market with returns of 4-5% so increasing volume was paramount to retain profitability.

So armed with large mortgages and loans from manufacturers, many dealers embarked on relatively large scale developments using market projections which to say were ambitious would be an understatement.

And then the wheels came off.

Scrappage has limited the impact of large scale volume reductions for many dealers but those searching questions are soon to be asked of the industry again.

The next part will concentrate on the weakness of the retail motor industry.

What will happen to the car market in 2010?

2009-12-17T11:31:00.000-08:00

Starting a used car business in 2007 was like opening a tanning salon in Pompeii the day before a few natives started to wonder why, after a giant plate of pasta, they thought they could hear their stomach's rumbling.

However, despite the very challenging trading conditions we turned a profit. 2009 has been rewarding as we have learnt from painful mistakes made in 2008 and the market has returned in force.

So having experienced the euphoric highs and depressing lows, what on earth is 2010 going to throw at The Internet Car Lot?

The market starts with new car sales.

The scrappage scheme is forecast to run out of funds in February and there is no sign yet that the Government will extend the scheme. Despite the end coming close to election time, with Government spending likely to be the key campaign issue, throwing money at shiny new cars could be difficult when so many cuts are likely in public spending.

VAT returns to 17.5% and there are many (myself included) who thinks it could rise to 20% post election. As VAT is payable on all new cars this will add further cost to the price of a new car.

The weakness of the pound has already seen Daihatsu pull out of the UK car market and most manufacturers have implemented price rises through the course of this year. Whilst there a number of manufacturers who build cars in the UK, only certain models (with the exception of JLR and MINI) are positively affected with the majority still coming from primarily the Eurozone.

Therefore I think we will see a very tough new car market and one which will be under severe financial pressure. I was speaking to a German manufacturer dealer principle yesterday and his 2010 target is the same as this year so I am concerned some car makers will be in for a shock.

Lest we forget that the forecast for the 2010 economy in general is not good. The term 'w-shaped recession' is being bandied about regularly and it is difficult to argue against given economic data.

So, how will that affect us?

Positively I hope and using common sense there is no reason to be doubtful.

There is still no overall surplus of used cars. The majority of registrations in 2009 have been genuine retail or business customers, not hordes of pre-registered vehicles like we saw in 2008.

Dealers do not have the funding levels available for pre-reg to be openly available and as discussed already, many manufacturers will find it too costly to support this form of marketing activity.

Many people may be dissuaded from a new car if the average new car price rise is as much as 5% so may look for value in used cars instead.

In summary there is no way that cars will rise in price like they did throughout 2009 but I think it is fair to say the prices will remain very consistent.

Jamie

Banger for your bucks...

2009-11-30T12:36:00.000-08:00

In addition to the hordes of three year old Ford Foci (is this the correct pluralisation of a Focus?!), German machinery and other fine motoring specimens that you find on http://www.theinternetcarlot.co.uk/, there is another - dare I say it - almost dirtier side to our business.

Before you ask, nothing illegal, nothing sinister and certainly nothing that would involve a visit from those splendid civil servants at HMRC.

I am talking about the world of the 'banger'. To me, a 'banger' can be defined as a car which may be old or mechanically infirm but is definitely cheap.

We generate many cars in part exchange which fall into one if not all three of those categories. In order to maintain good relationships with franchised dealerships, we also take many of their cheaper cuts. Think of us as a Hilton hotel with a youth hostel in the basement.

These make there way either to http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/internet-carlot/ or through a 'spares/repair' advertisement on Autotrader.

Many dealers do not relish getting involved in this end of the car market but I - as has been said by many - am different to the rest.

My affinity to the banger started in 1998 when I joined the trade. As a reward (sic) for working many long hours, the sales manager agreed to let me use whatever delightful beasts we had lying around the back instead of using my own car.

One of my best mates Alec was already into this form of car buying. Recently he bought a 1985 BMW 316i for £800 from a man called Cheeki who lived in Wembley. The two hour journey to go ten miles on various TFL services meant he was somewhat committed to the purchase before he arrived. On the test drive Alec noticed that the speedo was not working. 'Cheeki', he said, 'how do you know how fast you are going?' Alec enquired, 'I imagine.' Cheeki replied casually...

I drove some serious sheds that summer including a Rover 820i that broke down as I put it back in the compound to such an extent that it had to be scrapped the next day, but none of them let me down......significantly.......or at least at rush hour.

When I worked at BMW, I often left my company car behind so that I could drive the 30 miles home in one of our part exchanges. You could say it was like choosing the Golden Girls over Girls Aloud.

The difference between then and now is that the bangers are ours and as a result I get more pleasure from the experience.

Yesterday I bought a 1998 (R) Mercedes C220CDi estate in doom blue (read 'the money of colour' post for a description) with dark blue cloth. It has only done 203,000 miles and is as square as Gordon Brown. OK, so an atomic cloud appears every time the old girl fires up but when she is running she purrs like a kitten.....with asthma. OK, when we are driving the dash is lit up like Oxford Street at Christmas but none of those warning lights are severe enough to worry about. It would be bad form to disclose how much I paid for her but suffice to say in true motor trade fashion it involved a small hairy primate.

Searching for the perfect banger is like searching for the perfect partner. You have many bad dates but keep coming back for more. To push this woeful metaphor to the dangerous edge, you could describe me as having Mormon-esque values when it comes to bangers.

The banger allows you to scratch any motoring itch. £1000 can buy an old MR2, a classic (although no doubt rusty as an anchor) Mini or an old Landie, the list is endless.

So am I here advocating that everyone should save their hard earned money and go and buy a banger?

No and not just because I sell some more expensive cars.

The banger can be a fickle friend.

Many are the time I have been stood up in a pub with a pint in my hand by a banger. Many are the times I have lent the banger some money only for the banger to disappear. Many are the times I have gone on holiday with a banger and we have fallen out.

You get the picture.

I am a great friend though and cannot help coming back for more.....

Jamie

Remember remember to buy in November

2009-11-17T00:52:00.001-08:00

Sometimes you cannot help when you need to change your car.

The sight of people stranded by the roadside with their arms folded staring demonically at a hazard light flashing car is not uncommon.

Exasperation leads to the purchase of a new car. Ironically in most cases it follows a large bill to fix the catalytic problem which in our experience rarely manifests itself again but once that seed has been sown it is very hard to ignore.

There is also the circumstantial need. A lady with a bump, a set of L plates and a puppy are all welcome sights at any car dealership as these are sure signs of a new car requirement.

Emotional factors conspire to drive (excuse the tacky pun) other people to a car change. I once sold a Rover 216i cabriolet to a couple on a glorious Sunday morning. Not unusual in itself but the fact they were wearing paint splattered overalls, had a car full of paint and the fact our dealership was next to Homebase suggested it may have been something of an impulse purchase.

Some people however have the steely resolve to look for a car when they feel the market is ripe for the best deal.

It was often considered that the best time to buy a car (new or used) was in August when dealers were chasing new car targets and many more used vehicles hit the market. The motor trade forced a change eight years ago to March and September plate changes so the significance of these dates has been reduced.

I now believe November is the best month to buy a used car specifically. Why?

Primarily it seems the retail public hide away in November. The looming expense and lack of holiday before Christmas has a massive impact.

The seasonal change of reduced daylight and colder weekends can also affect the psychological prospect of going to examine used cars.

The supply of used cars increases as many large fleet operators and dealer groups try to reduce stocking levels before year end so the disposal process starts in November.

Manufacturers are starting to review their year activities and pressure is applied to their dealers to hit targets which has a knock on affect to their used car buying activity.

All of these factors outlined above conspire to force an abnormally higher reduction to both wholesale and retail prices alike.

Be warned though, mid December normally heralds a return for car buyers as they reconcile their Christmas expenditure with the purchase of a new car.

Many savvy dealers are also very active with purchasing as they aim to counter the strong wholesale prices often seen in January so supply can dwindle.

Jamie

The Money of Colour

2009-10-15T01:30:00.000-07:00

I was recently asked to help a friend who was choosing his new company car. The car of choice was a BMW 320d touring and as a result the budget the company provided left little room for any additional specification. We debated all manner of optional extras but the most contentious of them all was the colour.

The gentleman in question lives in Paris and any reader who is familiar with the French capital will know it is essentially a giant banger race. There are no need for reverse parking sensors in Paris, when you hit the car you are parking next too you stop and go forward!

The 'discussion' centred around his desire for metallic paint and the opportunity cost was an i-Pod connector. 'Why have metallic when firstly it is not your car and secondly half of it will be lying on the Parisien pavement in six months?'.'Because it looks better' came the reply.

It got me thinking about the emotive nature of colour when applied to used cars and trying to quantify how much someone would pay for the 'right' colour?

Of course, early used car salesmen had it easy. 'Yes madam, come and look at our approved range of Model T's.....'

Everyone has a favourite colour for a car and certain cars look fantastic in certain colours. There are colours which possess a timeless air and some which go out of fashion faster than a shellsuit.

In my opinion dark blue, British racing green and black have always had an air of sophistication particularly when coupled with a light leather interior. However, ask some people their opinion and dark blue or green cars are owned by people who are prospected by Saga and black cars are owned by people who have served time at Her Majesty's.

For the last ten years silver has been the most popular colour choice amongst motorists. The major benefit of silver is an ability to retain an air of cleanliness despite being dirty. It is also a colour which does not really offend, the Gary Lineker of colours if you will.

Kent constabulary started the trend of ordering police cars in silver to try and attract better residual values. With some degree of irony, of late many people in the trade have been adopting terms more commonly seen in haute couture by saying white is the new silver. It must be noted that white used to be very popular (and always has been in North America) and silver was the new white, so in essence is white really just the new white??!!

Brown is definitely a colour that we Brits seem loathed to adopt. When I was at Saab we had a colour called 'copper bronze' which needs little description. I tried to find a picture of the colour on Google but in testiment to the popularity of it I was unsuccessful!

This brings me neatly on to names. I was recently driving back from Exeter when I saw a new MINI is the most disgusting colour. Whilst talking to a sales manager from a MINI dealer I asked him why on earth MINI had launched such a bad - in my opinion! - colour and what was it called? 'Interchange Yellow' he told me. If anyone knows why answers on a postcard...

There are a number of unofficial trade names for colours. For example dark non metallic blue is known as 'doom' and bright red is known as 'dog ****'. The best I have heard applies to VW and and the Lupo in particular. When attempting to describe the light green to a trader he stopped me mid flow and said 'I know the colour, kermit...'

In summary, colour is always a matter of personal choice and with regard to used cars, no matter how horrible it may seem, someone bought it once and someone will buy it again but trying to ascertain the worth of a colour in financial terms seems nigh on impossible.

Jamie

Scrappage - Our opinion

2009-09-22T05:02:00.000-07:00

When the scrappage scheme was launched after a period of sustained lobbying from the RMIF and SMMT, I thought that it was too weak and lacked the teeth to prompt private buyers to return to the new car market.

Now the alloted funds are dwindling it would appear that it has had the desired affect and created new retail sales more quickly than anticipated. The question is sure to be will the scheme continue?

There are figures quoted in many trade publications that the scheme has actually created a surplus of tax relative to the subsidy, so it would seem that it should be an easy decision for Government. I would anticipate any announcement to be made as late as possible in order for the public relations machine to be more effective.

The manufacturers of smaller cars have naturally seen greater benefit as it is easy for someone to see value in what is in essence a £2000 reduction on a list price, the advert for the Fiat Punto at around £5k certainly raised my eyebrows.

It seems a shame that lots of serviceable cars which fill a great need at the lower end of the market have been broken for parts but in order to avoid system manipulation and for the Goverment to keep their green angle this could not happen.

The final year registration figures from the SMMT will no doubt be dramatically less than last
year but will be better than without scrappage.

Jamie

Our cars reach far and wide!!

2009-09-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

There has often been a worldwide market for many unusual, exotic and classic cars but the nature of our recently depressed used car market and weak pound have meant a lot of cheaper cars have been disappearing from this country.

Yesterday we sold a ten year old Jaguar S Type 4.0V8 that had done 126k, had one previous owner and a new MOT on eBay for £1710 to a chap from Hungary who intended to break it for parts!!

It got us thinking about all the cars in the last two years that we have sold for export.

We have sold a number of immigrant workers cars like a £200 Peugeot 406 which they came all the way from Middlesbrough to collect!

There was the 25 year old immaculate left hand drive Mercedes 300 which made it all the way to a new owner in Italy.

We sold a high mileage BMW 528i SE to some interesting characters from Tblisi in Georgia who intended to convert it to left hand drive and sell it on. Sadly for them they engaged first gear instead of reverse on their departure and the corner of the car was a bit flatter than before their arrival.

A number of cars have gone to Africa including a Toyota Rav4 to Tanzania, a VW Passat Estate to Ghana and a high spec Mercedes E Class to Algeria.

The strength of the Euro has also helped European buyers with right hand drive like Ireland and Cyprus. These buyers seem particularly fond of older Mercedes diesels.

Ultimately we do not mind if the car goes to Exeter or Eritrea as long as the new owner is happy!

Jamie

Its our birthday!!

2009-09-01T07:32:00.000-07:00

The Internet Car Lot turns two years old on the 1st of September and we have certainly learnt a lot in that time!

We started the business as the economic climate was really starting to degenerate and up until November last year we were operating in a market where the supply of cars was much higher than the retail demand. This meant that we could only stock a car for a very limited time before all the profit was lost through natural depreciation.

Ever since November the complete reverse has occured where the supply of good cars for retail has been limited and demand has outstripped that dwindling supply. This is why the value of used cars have increased by significant amounts compared to this time last year. Whilst this market is better for the trade and retail customers alike, it means that finding cars at a level which is still attractive for the customer yet retaining a profit for us has been very challenging.

Manufacturers have not been pre-registering cars in any number and the fleet operators have been extending leases as opposed to writing new business so it is no surprise that the new car market volume is so much less than the previous years. This then naturally affects us as a used car business as we have a lot less cars to coming through the system.

We are very excited about the propects for the next financial year as the economy looks more stable (although still not as bouyant as some political figures would suggest) and the car market looks to have weathered a very severe storm!

Jamie

New Website!!

2009-08-24T00:17:00.000-07:00

Like a conventional shop owner painting the front of their store, we felt after two years that the website needed a new look.

A few people commented that despite the aesthetic appeal of our last black background, it made the car text somewhat difficult to digest. We hope the move to a lighter design makes for a more functional site.

We now have a sell your car section. This is as a result of the chronic stock shortages that the motor trade has suffered since December 2008 and will hopefully help people get an idea of their car value even if they decide not to sell it to us.

The only other new feature is this blog. Our physical intangibility means that we need to embrace any opportunity for providing a cultural flavour for our company and hopefully weekly blog posts will do this.

We hope you like the new site, feel free to make any comments on the blog but naturally anything which uses foul and abusive language will be removed. We are however brave enough to leave any constructive criticism!!

Jamie