8:18 am, August 3, 2021
Cazoo says it’s on course for nearly £720m of revenue this year as it prepares to list on the New York Stock Exchange.
According to today’s Times (Aug 3), the online used car marketplace said its second-quarter sales rose by 605 per cent in value year on year to £141m versus £20m in 2020, and that it shifted 10,692 cars as opposed to 2,022 in 2020.
It also said it made £8m gross profit during the second quarter, increasing its per-car margin fourfold to £460. However, the gross profit figure doesn’t take into account overheads such as marketing.
Founder Alex Chesterman was quoted as saying: ‘We remain on track to achieve revenues approaching $1bn in 2021 and expect operational efficiencies to continue to drive further gross margin improvements.’
Cazoo attributed the gross profit figure and increased margin to ‘continued improvements across our buying and operations’.
It is merging with special purpose acquisition company Ajax I for the listing, which is set to put a $7bn (£5bn) valuation on the company.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission confirmed the listing to the online used car dealer last week, said Chesterman, and the agreement with Ajax I is set to be finalised by the end of August.
The parent company of the Daily Mail, which now owns just over a fifth of Cazoo, expects to make £956m from its investment.
Cazoo’s new subscription service, which it officially launched at the beginning of June after absorbing Drover, is said to have helped drive sales.
Cazoo lost £19m during its first year of business after it began trading at the end of 2019. It plans to launch on the continent later this year.
