July SMMT sales: Dealers
CAR dealers have been buoyed by the latest SMMT new car sales figures – but are wary of getting carried away.
Marshall chief executive Daksh Gupta said everyone was ‘delighted to be hearing some positive news being reported about our industry.
‘However, we must remember that we are now comparing sales against the period in 2008 when sales first slipped into sharp decline.’
Year-on-year improvements may not thus be fully representative.
Scrappage has, nevertheless, been a big help, said Gupta – ‘especially for Hyundai, now in the top 10 best sellers. What a fantastic result for them!’ Good news for Marshall too, he added, which has opened its first Hyundai car dealer in Cambridge…
For this car dealer group, things are looking good at the moment. ‘We have just had a record July, with all departments reporting rising profits, way ahead of budget.
‘We have been very happy to out-perform the market all year in new cars sales, but are also seeing substantial like-for-like growth in used car sales and margins - and also in our aftersales departments.’
But it’s not just Marshall that’s enjoying good times. Volvo Cars London also reports the national sales increase is being mirrored by its own success at dealer level.
Marketing man Alasdair Jakes told us that the scrappage scheme, ‘helped by additional support from Volvo UK, has been a significant driver of showroom footfall – which has translated into increased registrations and orders.
Now, it’s all eyes on next month. ‘We’re looking forward to a very positive start to the new 59 plate when it arrives in September.’
Do your experiences mirrors these car dealers? Are your new or used car sales seeing similar gains to those widely reported on the news? Do please share your thoughts with us!
Tags: hyundai, marshall, new car scrap, sales, scrappage, SMMT, volvo cars london