Guest Blog

I do try to keep the topics of my blogs varied, covering the whole spectrum of ICDP research and the various conversations that I have around not only sales but also aftersales and other related areas such as mobility.  However, there is so much going on at the moment in respect of changes to franchise dealer agreements, restructuring of dealer ...

Following on from the news a couple weeks ago that the second largest dealer group in the US, Lithia Motors, was in discussions to acquire the UK group Jardine Motors, statutory filings revealed that TDR Capital, directly and through subsidiaries, had acquired over 3% of #4 UK dealer group Vertu. This sits alongside their interests of over 20% in #3 ...

As a child I went to Sunday School and recall to this day being told the cautionary tale from the Bible of the foolish man who built his house on the sand. The other half of the tale said that the wise man would build his house on rock.  In later life I actually owned a house that was built ...

We all know that the Tesla roadster which Elon Musk fired into space in 2018 will at some point come back through the atmosphere and crash and burn.  However that is estimated to happen in millions of years whereas investors and the automotive industry at large are much more interested in what’s going to happen to Tesla as a company ...

Despite the claims of many industry commentators, we are some way off seeing artificial intelligence (AI) power 95% of customer interactions in retail by 2025. All that said, I believe there is a specific role for AI to play in our industry; it’s one I’ve seen first hand at carwow as it’s when humans and machines work together, combining and ...

As the industry starts to wind down towards the Christmas period, many dealers will be anticipating a seasonal dip in enquiries, potentially exacerbated by the current cost-of-living crisis. However, the Christmas period is actually one of intensifying digital activity for consumers, and that presents an important opportunity for the motor retail sector to start 2023 on a positive footing. Sprout ...

  Given the current economic backdrop one would be forgiven for equating the fall in used car sales [in Q3] to a similarly dramatic drop in demand from cash conscious car buyers. But whilst demand is easing on the inflated levels recorded last year, in reality, the market is simply feeling the brunt of the massive dearth in available stock, ...

Findings from the IMI Diversity Task Force Report, published earlier this year, revealed that just 7% of those working in the automotive retail sector are from an ethnic minority, compared to non-automotive industries where the proportion  is 11%. It is important to be specific and precise around the language we use. But one of the challenges of terminology is that ...

“The old adage ‘what goes up must come down’ doesn’t seem to apply to used cars, at least not for the time being. The unprecedented increase in average used car values that we’ve seen in the last 12 months shows no sign of a major reversal. Our expectation is that this new level of pricing will be the norm for ...

Since I last wrote about the so-called disruptors in the UK used car business in Motor Trader, there have been a few developments. At market level we have seen used car values and demand soften in recent weeks, requiring everyone to be on top of their game to avoid being caught with over-valued, ageing stock. The continuing steady decline in ...