Lookers shareholders have approved a takeover by Canadian firm Global Auto Holdings, with 91% voting in favour. Global Auto Holdings bid 130p per share, and this was approved by Lookers at a meeting...

Lookers has acquired of the business and assets of Chelmsford-based Waterhouse Cars in a deal which it says complements the group’s existing Volvo dealership in Colchester and adds 40 dedicated...

The last 12 months have been a very good year for the automotive sector, particularly for most vehicle retailers. Whilst 2023 will obviously have serious challenges, hopefully the business practices...

A few months ago, I posed the question of whether now is a good time to sell a retail car business. Recent enquiries at MHA certainly suggest that more dealers are now evaluating future options. The...

With production issues hitting the new car market, economic uncertainty in the short to medium term and tentative moves among various OEMs to transition to agency style agreements, there would surely...

Consolidations, mergers, acquisitions and divestments have been a permanent feature of the sector while I have been working in it. For example, Ford acquired brands like Jaguar, and support businesses...

As the country comes out of lockdown and business in dealerships returns to normal (or as close to normal as will be possible), senior management attention is already switching back from...

Dealer balance sheets have been, tested but they are proving resilient. Listed dealers have significantly reduced debt over the past decade and several leading dealer groups have strong net cash...

Vertu has completed the purchase of five BMW and Mini businesses from Inchcape plus one BMW Motorrad business and a used car site for a total cash consideration of £18.7 million plus £8.9m of used...

The Covid-19 crisis has accelerated what Cambria CEO Mark Lavery describes as a generational change in automotive retail, but he doesn’t believe that the move to an agency model is inevitable. “I...

On the back of the some of the adjustments seen amongst the accounts of the listed companies, I have dug a bit deeper into the accounting for pension schemes and the effect they can have on the...

With the backdrop of the election having been and gone, and the UK finally leaving the European Union – some 10 months late, it appears that the country is in good spirits. As reported on the...

The consumer has proven to be relatively robust to date and a number of listed dealers have reported positive earnings trends in recent months. Clearly challenges remain: the resignation of Theresa...

Hendy Group has extended its footprint across the south of England with the acquisition of Westover Group for an undisclosed sum, in a move that chief executive Paul Hendy described as “hugely...

A retailer specialising in the upper end of the used car sector says that selling his business to a PLC which has a portfolio of destination gastro pubs and inns is a ‘natural fit’ that will...

Vertu has acquired Newport based Vans Direct for £7.5m, in an acquisition that the board expects to be immediately earnings enhancing. Vertu CEO Robert Forrester said “This is an exciting...

Stoneacre Motor Group is set to continue its expansion plans with the acquisition of North East-based Mill Garages, according to Auto Retail Agenda’s sources. The purchase will double the number of...

Retailer acquisitions through 2016 and 2017 mean the largest groups now control 28% of the market. Dealer groups increased their share more rapidly in 2017 than in recent years, with the largest...

Vertu Motors has bought Home Counties based Hughes Group for £21.8 million. The acquisition marks Vertu’s first purchase for two years. Hughes, based around Beaconsfield, operates six outlets for...

Former Ridgeway CEO John O’Hanlon has returned to the auto retail sector as founder of Waylands Automotive, looking to pick up on what he describes as unfinished business, and aiming to build a...