Through its subsidiaries the Group has significant interests in the retail motor sector, holding franchises for the sale of 19 different brands. In this way the Group is protected against the temporary fall-off in unit sales which some manufacturers experience from time to time.
Within each franchise, the independent profitability of the four principal departments, namely, new vehicle sales, used vehicle sales, service and parts, serves to provide an internal buffer against an individual decline in demand.
Structure within a retail motor dealership
Each dealership operates as a free-standing business under the leadership of a dealer principal. Within each dealership the following departments are headed up by a department manager: new vehicle sales, used vehicle sales, service, parts, finance and insurance, and administration. The number of employees in a branch varies from 10 to 100 depending on the size of the branch.
Each franchise has a dedicated franchise manager responsible for overseeing the operations of all branches within that franchise and for communications with franchise manufacturers.
Each branch is also overseen by a regional accountant and a regional finance and insurance manager. These senior managers are independent of individual branches and provide an independent control and reporting line to the members of the Exco.