Rory RSC 596 Posted March 9, 2019 10 minutes ago, trade vet said: Typical ‘employee’.....Lateley,I told our guy it is now the done thing and a good idea to emphasise and photograph when a car has 2 keys on the advert.So he does but he also emphasises and photographs the others with one key. Every company has one of those. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brunswick 10 Posted March 12, 2019 And the result of all this bad management, bad policies, bad staff and bad stock is...….. http://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/pendragon-posts-losses-2018-95-8m-write/167428?fbclid=IwAR33DN-Dn5EQxxR5Ltldq6-ghV_aqG2I4zwNsJNY7nVjq3y-HTSKzctsRRA Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom 164 Posted March 12, 2019 And the CEO is jumping ship - I mean retiring Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
have a word with the wife 299 Posted March 12, 2019 On 09/03/2019 at 8:44 AM, trade vet said: Typical ‘employee’.....Lateley,I told our guy it is now the done thing and a good idea to emphasise and photograph when a car has 2 keys on the advert.So he does but he also emphasises and photographs the others with one key. brilliant Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CCC 31 Posted March 13, 2019 (edited) 16 hours ago, Brunswick said: And the result of all this bad management, bad policies, bad staff and bad stock is...….. http://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/pendragon-posts-losses-2018-95-8m-write/167428?fbclid=IwAR33DN-Dn5EQxxR5Ltldq6-ghV_aqG2I4zwNsJNY7nVjq3y-HTSKzctsRRA I read the first few comments and thought this sounds like a business in desperate times, not a sustainable business model and low and behold I get down to this post. When your business is sustainable only with big volume and depends on sales of sundry items and finance you’re in trouble. Seen it loads of times before in all sectors. I fear for a lot of the new manufacturers and their dealers, in these times of ageing populations, climate change, squeezed incomes is the real solution bigger, more feature laden, increasingly expensive SUV style cars? Just like the UK supermarkets spent the 1990 to 2010 competing with bigger and bigger stores filled full of stuff we don’t need only to have their business and profitability ripped apart by Aldi, who offered sufficient choice, more convenience (smaller, more local stores) at cheaper prices, I reckon one day a manufacturer will do the same and offer a sufficient product at a cheap price and rip the ass out of a lot of new sales. Not a problem for a used independent dealer though, the money should be there to make in all times with the right stock profile Edited March 13, 2019 by CCC 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark101 536 Posted March 13, 2019 18 minutes ago, CCC said: I reckon one day a manufacturer will do the same and offer a sufficient product at a cheap price and rip the ass out of a lot of new sales. They did: Skoda, Hyundai, Kia - they're not cheap anymore and now Dacia - watch them gain traction and start adding bells n whistles and increase their pricing too. Whether you're building a compact car or a large estate - the raw costs to the manufacturer are not too disimilar. Aldi/Lidl - compare their pricing when they entered the market (UK) with today and yes they are cheaper than the other big brands but nowhere near "cheap" anymore. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rory RSC 596 Posted March 13, 2019 1 hour ago, Mark101 said: They did: Skoda, Hyundai, Kia - they're not cheap anymore and now Dacia - watch them gain traction and start adding bells n whistles and increase their pricing too. Whether you're building a compact car or a large estate - the raw costs to the manufacturer are not too disimilar. Aldi/Lidl - compare their pricing when they entered the market (UK) with today and yes they are cheaper than the other big brands but nowhere near "cheap" anymore. £20 in Aldi goes a lot further than £20 anywhere else still. The main thing in that article is the growth of the used car supermarkets and that is where the money is. For us finding stock its going to be hard but I reckon this is a very good time to be a used car trader if you are lean, efficient and forward thinking. If your prep is too high and expensive I think it may well become unsustainable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andyg 0 Posted March 13, 2019 Yes, retailed in whatever state they come in. Truth is last year I had a customer for a car, EH had one in (full history) at less than I'd pay at the block for same car. I went and bought it from them!! Did the bodywork and retailed it. They'd agreed to paint a dent for me but yes like you said Stevie wonder special. I redid it. Fortunately I knew EXACTLY what I was going in to but they lied to me and left me in no doubt about how their customers feel... I hate loosing a sale if I've got a customer sitting but not sure I'd do it again to be honest. Good for us if customers experience it for themselves but nightmare for price comparison. I'm forever explaining to customers the difference - admin fees, crap tyres, condition, etc.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
It's me 615 Posted March 13, 2019 17 minutes ago, andyg said: Good for us if customers experience it for themselves but nightmare for price comparison. I'm forever explaining to customers the difference - admin fees, crap tyres, condition, etc.. HI andy and welcome ive finally learnt that you can be right with customers and help them till the sheep come home but in todays market they are only interested in the bottom line this market has changed out of all proportion this last 24 months Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BHM 994 Posted March 14, 2019 23 hours ago, CCC said: I reckon one day a manufacturer will do the same and offer a sufficient product at a cheap price and rip the ass out of a lot of new sales. They’ve come & gone - well, priced themselves out of the ‘Aldi’ market. The latest is Dacia but funnily enough a couple of days ago I was handed one of their brochures. The bottom Sandera £6995 & tops out at £11395 and the Duster starts at £9995 & tops out at £18695 - hardly Romanian peasant money. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andyg 0 Posted March 14, 2019 Dave, i know it's difficult explaining because I hate the idea of bad mouthing anyone else, so I just don't do it. I stick to general facts like admin fees and the quality of what WE do (not what EH etc don't do). Interesting you saying last 2 years. Yes I'm finding the bottom line price thing with customers more and more of a challenge all the time, even ones who trust me and want to but from me... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BHM 994 Posted March 14, 2019 1 hour ago, andyg said: Interesting you saying last 2 years. Yes I'm finding the bottom line price thing with customers more and more of a challenge all the time, even ones who trust me and want to but from me... ........but there’s a bullshitter on Facebook with a few photos (carefully avoiding the registration plate) outside a shithole compound selling on behalf of his friend offering the earth (“my friend will send the FSH”) and he tells me the car’s absolutely split mint and it’s cheaper than yours and xxxxxx and xxxxxx and xxxxxx (the claims go on & on). You can’t compete unless you’re scum, I know of a Facebook trader - he sells absolutely anything & just hopes it doesn’t come back. Tbh most don’t return & he gets away with all sorts, I wouldn’t be able to sleep selling the death traps he does. Recent sales include a Vx with intermittent power steering failure sold to a young mother (that one actually came back) & a French gem that his favourable MOT tester helpfully cast an eye over without logging on & condemned so that was sold with the remaining MOT. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you his former occupation (and no, I won’t be disclosing it either!). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Contracts 68 Posted March 14, 2019 Brought a nice Velar from Stratstone last week, absolutely mint, low miles and they failed to notice nearly £12k of options in their pricing! After buying I mentioned how did they reach the price for it and they said it is head office set and looks at similar cars in the local area. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Frankieola 22 Posted March 14, 2019 14 minutes ago, Contracts said: Brought a nice Velar from Stratstone last week, absolutely mint, low miles and they failed to notice nearly £12k of options in their pricing! After buying I mentioned how did they reach the price for it and they said it is head office set and looks at similar cars in the local area. Was it a Stratstone Land Rover dealership? Surely they should have noticed the options? The whole UCM thing is how they price their cars but if they missed the options then someone seriously messed up! I think it was them that were banging out new Velars for peanuts on PCP a couple of months ago too wasn't it? £300 or so a month on 6000 miles a year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Contracts 68 Posted March 14, 2019 Was a LR franchise, to be fair I have had a few good results from Pendragon dealers over the last year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JimmyGlen 13 Posted March 14, 2019 Evening gents, sorry, been a bit busy and just catching up with the post. Funnily enough, just read that Pendragon have posted a 44.2M loss. Surprising that, when they're selling their stock for peanuts! On top of that, sold a 35k miles 65 plate MINI JCW tonight over a JCW the customer had transported up from an EH branch down south with 12k miles on it. Customer said their car was cheaper (even with the much lower miles!!) but the car was a monster. Great to see their model doesn't fool everyone, and that it appears not to be working terribly well for them!! Stevie. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
