Auto Retail Agenda: 9 January 2023
07 January 2023
- RICHARD BLUMBERGER LEAVES MARSHALL
- LEARN EVERYTHING ABOUT AGENCY IN A DAY
- LLOYD MOTOR GROUP RECRUITMENT DRIVE
- FORAY PROMOTES CLAIRE GARDINER
- PENDRAGON MOTHERWELL PLANS GET GREEN LIGHT
- WILL LIFO TAX RELIEF BILL BE REVIVED?
- ILLINOIS RETAILERS FAIL TO STOP RIVIAN, LUCID DIRECT SALES
- STOCKWATCH
- COMING UP: UK GDP
- FIGURES TO WARN OF RECESSION THIS WEEK
- END IN SIGHT FOR INTEREST RATE RISES
Richard Blumberger leaves Marshall
Marshall Motor Group CFO Richard Blumberger has left the business, Auto Retail Agenda understands. He is listed as resigning from both roles on 31 December 2022 at Companies House. Auto Retail Agenda also understands that several other Marshall directors have tendered their resignations but have yet to leave their roles.
Blumberger was appointed by Daksh Gupta and the Marshall board in 2018, replacing Mark Raban (who moved to Lookers as CEO) in January 2019.
Blumberger exercised almost 400,000 share options when Constellation’s 400p a share bid for Marshall was accepted in May 2022. He is still listed as CFO for Marshall on LinkedIn and no details of his next role have been revealed. Auto Retail Agenda has contacted Blumberger for comment, but has yet to receive a response.
Auto Retail Agenda sources have indicated Blumberger has taken a job outside auto retail.
Motorline results to March 2022, signed off by Blumberger in December, have also been released. They are for a 15-month period after the business changed its accounting reference date following the Marshall takeover in October 2021.
Turnover grew from £276m to £493m, and profit before tax grew from £2.8m to £5.3m.
Learn everything about agency in a day
Speakers include Lookers CEO Mark Raban, Inchcape CFO Stephen Hill, CitNOW’s Alistair Horsburgh, ATG’s Tim Smith, Radius Law director Iain Larkins, AADA CEO James Voortman, Salesforce’s Matt Simkins and many others.
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Lloyd Motor Group recruitment drive
Lloyd Motor Group York is expanding and plans to create up to 25 new jobs. The JLR retailer will see staff numbers grow to over 100, with the site housing a new call centre to be used by four Lloyd sites. It is planning a recruitment open day on Monday 16 January.
Foray promotes Claire Gardiner
Wiltshire Ford franchise Foray Motor Group has promoted Claire Gardiner, formerly group finance controller, to finance director. Robin Fielder has also been named sales director.
Pendragon Motherwell plans get green light
Pendragon plans to build a new retailer in Motherwell have been given the go ahead. The site has been vacant for four years. During consultation, just one person commented, expressing concern over traffic and car transporter deliveries.
WORLD NEWS
Will LIFO tax relief bill be revived?
US retailers impacted by record-low inventory are hopeful a stalled LIFO tax relief bill will still be passed this year. Around half the country’s new car retailers use a ‘last in, first out’ tax deferment strategy, which requires them to maintain a sufficient level of inventory to avoid triggering large income tax bills. Low inventory levels have triggered the long-deferred tax for some retailers – leaving them with tax bills of $2m or more.
LIFO relief would allow retailers until 2025 to replace their inventories and determine their income tax liability.
Illinois retailers fail to stop Rivian, Lucid direct sales
Rivian and Lucid can continue to sell direct to consumers in Illinois after a lawsuit by the Illinois Automobile Dealers Association was dismissed by a judge. Tesla already has a licence to sell direct in the state.
STOCKWATCH
Closing prices on 6 January 2023 and weekly change
Auto Trader Group 539.8p (+24.2p / +4.5%)
Caffyns 500.0p (n/c)
Halfords 218.0p (+9.0p / +4.2%)
Inchcape 896.5p (+76.5p / +8.9%)
Lookers 80.6p (n/c)
Motorpoint 145.0p (n/c)
Pendragon 19.2p (n/c)
Vertu 55.8p (+1.8p / +3.2%)
COMING UP
Tuesday, UK retail sales
Friday, UK GDP
MONEY MATTERS
Figures to warn of recession this week
ONS data due on Friday is expected to show the UK economy fell into the red in November, effectively confirming a technical recession. February figures are expected to formally show the UK has entered recession.
Interest rate rises and strikes mean “a deeper and more prolonged downturn may follow,” warned economist Sandra Horsfield.
End in sight for interest rate rises
The peak of interest rates is likely to be 4%, believes one commentator, and may involve either a half-point rise on February 2, when the MPC next meets, or two subsequent quarter-point rises. The impact on the economy of higher interest rates is already starting to show, while businesses remain under cost pressure. Money supply has also slowed as quantitative easing, well, eases.
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