10:58 am, October 10, 2019
INCHCAPE plc has agreed to sell its Fleet Solutions business (IFS) to Toyota Fleet Mobility in a £100m deal.
It follows recent disposals of its less productive dealerships in the UK, and retail-only disposals in Australia and China.
Inchcape has decided to focus on its core distribution operations and says disposals made to date have successfully streamlined the group.
The IFS business leases fleet vehicles and provides fleet management services to B2B customers including Toyota.
The scope of the business means there is limited synergy with Inchcape’s UK retail dealership business, although Toyota does feature in a line-up of manufacturer partners which also includes brands such as BMW, Mini, JLR and Lexus.
In the year to December 2018, IFS contributed revenue of £60m and trading profit of £9m to Inchcape.
The gross assets of IFS, as included within Inchcape Group’s consolidated balance sheet at the end of June, were £78m. The transaction is expected to complete before the end of the year.
Stefan Bomhard, group CEO of Inchcape plc, said: ‘This transaction is a further demonstration of strategic progress and focus on our core distribution activities which generate 90 per cent of group trading profit.
‘We are pleased to have been able to further streamline our UK retail market activities by selling IFS at a good valuation.
‘We remain focused on our Ignite strategy which frames our operational excellence initiatives, has driven 10 distribution deals since 2016 and sets the foundations for capabilities that will enable us to position Inchcape well for the future.
‘I would like to thank our IFS team for all their hard work and dedication and wish them success under Toyota, Inchcape’s oldest OEM partner.’
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