‘How strong is the retail motor market in these most uncertain of times?’ In July, the first “undisturbed” full month of trading since the pandemic, new car registrations were up 11 per cent, albeit July is traditionally a quiet month, reports The Times..
With the plate change in September and the biggest trading weeks of the year outside the March plate change, September could be ‘make-or-break for the trade’ says The Times.
Robert Forrester, chief executive of Vertu, told The Times about business after bank holiday: “Order intake is up strongly. Consumer demand is up substantially.” He tempers that optimistic outlook though by saying that no one yet know quite knows what the economy will look like in six months”.
Daksh Gupta, chief executive of Marshalls Motor Group, added: “It could possibly be one of the biggest Septembers on record but with one caveat: supply.”
The Times also reported Daksh Gupta is a proponent of the “revenge buying” theory that there are plenty of car-buying households surprised at just how much they have saved during the lockdown by not travelling to work, not going out and not going on holiday. Yet with all the manufacturers having lost months of production and factories still running at lower productivity, he says that there may not be enough cars being shipped to fulfil the demand.
Sue Robinson, director of the National Franchised Dealers Association, said: “The market is strong on new and used, and dealers are reporting strong order books, strong footfall and strong online inquiries.
“The real test, however, will be the last quarter when people start coming off furlough or being made redundant and the impact that will have on consumer confidence.”
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