8:33 am, August 12, 2022
Cazoo needs to ‘capture hearts and minds’ away from major cities if it is to become a success, a leading dealer has said.
Stewart McMinn, of Plympton Car Centre, believes the struggling retailer has not done enough to win over customers all over the country.
Last week, the firm announced record losses of £243m for the first half of the year, with the firm’s CFO replaced following the news.
McMinn, whose Plymouth dealership won Used Car Sales Team of the Year at last year’s Used Car Awards, believes geography is playing a key part.
The 46-year-old also accused the firm of being a ‘financial institution rather than a car retailer’ in a withering assessment of where it is going wrong.
Speaking to Car Dealer, he said: ‘I am not surprised [by the latest financial results].
‘Here in the darkest depths of the country we have not really come up against the big online retailers when it comes to competing for customers.
‘Of course, the odd Cazoo van drives by but it is certainly not a regular thing.
The team from Plympton Car Centre collecting their Used Car Award
‘I think geography definitely plays a part. We are a little bit more backwards here – and I don’t mean that disparagingly!
‘I just think customers are a bit more traditional and want to see, look and touch a car before they buy it.
‘The online car buying experience might appeal to people in places like London or Birmingham but in places like this it hasn’t really caught on.
‘If they’re going to be successful they do need to capture the hearts and minds of buyers living outside outside major cities.
‘They need to capture the market better because at the moment I would describe them as a financial institution rather than a car retailer.’
Despite reservations about how Cazoo is operating, McMinn believes the company is here to stay.
However, he says that attitudes need to change before the company can be successful.
He added: ‘I actually think they may have come along five or ten years too soon.
‘Cazoo and the online car buying experience are not going to go away but people’s attitudes need to change.’
Car Dealer produced a half-hour special all about Cazoo earlier this year. You can watch it at the top of this story or visit our YouTube channel.
