26 August 2019

Group 1’s UK boss has cited the level of manufacturer push in the car market as the reason the franchised retail model hasn’t switched to agency agreements yet.

In a wide-ranging interview for sister publication Auto Retail Bulletin, Group 1 managing director, Darren Guiver said he “wouldn’t bet against” the introduction of agency agreements for retail sales in the UK following trials in other countries such as New Zealand and some Scandinavian countries.

“However, in a true agency type scenario, there will be a loss of volume. Because if we aren’t targeted in the same way, or we don’t have to register cars in other guises such as pre-registering, then you’ve got to find a way to mitigate that volume risk. And I think that’s probably the conundrum that’s holding it at bay at the moment,” said Mr Guiver.

In the full interview, published in the September issue of Auto Retail Bulletin, Mr Guiver also discusses his plans for Group 1 in the UK including the recent purchase of several VW operations from Inchcape and the business’s plans to decrease waiting times for aftersales customers.

If you’re not already a Bulletin subscriber, you can sign up for a free trial here.

Tags: Agency Agreements, Darren Guiver, Group 1 Automotive, pre-registration