Beltway Talk Podcast: Where Does the Dealership Buy-Sell Market Stand Today?
AIADA’s Beltway Talk podcast is back with a look at the dealership buy-sell market during the COVID-19 pandemic. Broadcasting from her home, Beltway Talk host Hannah Oliver discusses the 2020 outlook for the dealership buy-sell market with guest Erin Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors, the leading sell-side advisor to auto dealers in the U.S. Armed with her latest Blue Sky Report, Kerrigan covers how dealership transactions performed in 2019, the challenges dealers face today, and her outlook for the months to come – including what brands and stores can best expect to weather the COVID-19 storm. Listen in and subscribe to Beltway Talk by clicking here.
U.S. Auto Sales Recovering During Coronavirus Pandemic But Still Significantly Down
Big discounts, low financing rates, and states loosening restrictions on auto dealerships are assisting in a sales rebound heading into the end of April, according to J.D. Power. Sales this month are still expected to be down about 50% compared with April 2019. However, reports CNBC, the decline is far less than previously expected with the coronavirus pandemic wiping out the majority of sales for the month, the firm said Wednesday. “We are now firmly in a period where we see sales of new vehicles start to recover,” Thomas King, president of the data and analytics division and chief product officer at J.D. Power, told CNBC. “We’re still severely depressed in terms of vehicle demand, but the good news is we have turned the corner in terms of the declines.” King said 0% financing offers, big incentives from automakers and all states now allowing at least online vehicle sales all contributed to the rebounding sales, which are up 11 percentage points from the end of March. Read more here.
AutoNation Promotes COO Jim Bender to President
AutoNation Inc. named COO Jim Bender as president, transferring one of the titles held by sidelined CEO Cheryl Miller to a 20-year company veteran. Automotive News reports that the move comes nine days after AutoNation said Miller, CEO and president, had been granted leave for health reasons. On April 13, the auto retail giant named Executive Chairman Mike Jackson, 71, to fill in for Miller, 47, until her return. Jackson told stockholders Wednesday that he expects to serve as CEO for several months while Miller is on medical leave. "Cheryl has requested that the details of her medical condition remain private, and the company is going to respect that. So we will not provide additional details," Jackson told shareholders during the company's short annual meeting. "I will serve as CEO in the next several months until Cheryl returns." Miller and Jackson were among 10 directors who were re-elected to the board for one-year terms during the 16-minute virtual meeting. Read more here.
While Used Cars Pile Up in Lots, the Classics Are Busy Changing Hands
As coronavirus cases surpass two million worldwide, the car industry has experienced an upheaval radical enough to permanently alter the trajectory of modern transportation as we know it, reports The Detroit News. Auto prices across the board have fallen 10% in recent weeks, according to Manheim, which is owned by Cox Automotive. Used-car sales in March fell 64%. As the pandemic decimates the auto industry, the rare classic cars market seems immune. “There is a lot of pent-up demand,” said the head of one auction house. Meanwhile, McLaren and others have preemptively pulled out of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the site of the year’s most important luxury car debuts. But while COVID-19 wreaks havoc elsewhere, quiet winners are emerging in the classic car market. In the new world order of cars, auction houses, brokers, and enthusiasts are stepping forward, often comfortably so. Read more here.
Coronavirus Will Change How We Create Cars, Say Top Designers
Across the car world, designers remain among the relative few in the industry who can continue their daily work uninterrupted, more or less, reports Bloomberg. While factory stalls everywhere from Volkswagen AG to General Motors Co. sent thousands of line workers home, the men and women who work to outline your car’s roof or orchestrate the feel of the lambswool carpets beneath your feet can gather virtually to push projects forward. Conversations among their lot have long centered around the notions of safety and luxury—how they intersect and how they’re evolving. What’s different already during the time of coronavirus is that new ideas about safety inside cars have emerged. “The future more than ever will be about the freedom of going places safely—and these cars will be more than ever about their interior,” Felix Kilbertus, the head of exterior design for Rolls-Royce, said on a Zoom call on April 21. “An interior has always been a safe space—people will do all kinds of things in their car they won’t do on their own front lawn.” Read more here.
Federated Insurance's Claim of the Month – Could It Happen to You?
A fire in the shop area of an auto dealer destroyed customer vehicles and damaged large portions of the building. Investigators did not conclude on the cause of the fire, but they believe that tools left plugged in overnight were the cause.
CLAIM AMOUNT: $3.2 Million
Flammable substances, high-voltage machinery, and other hazards that are commonplace in service areas can combine to spell disaster.
Don’t wait until Fire Prevention Week in October to make it a priority. Visit federatedinsurance.com or contact your local marketing representative for resources you can use to create or enhance your own risk management program.
Around the Web
Why This Mystery Car Was Discovered Buried in an English Garden [Autoblog]
The Best Looking Cars of 2020 [The Car Connection]
Automotive Company Creates Helpline for People in Need [CBS 19 News]
Hyundai Shows Off Updates to 2020 Veloster N [The Detroit Bureau]
