Here, ARC360 catches up with Jason Bond, Group Bodyshop Director at Drive Motor Retail, after Drive Vauxhall Bury St Edmunds recently won the Enterprise Repair Partner Award 2024 for Best Customer Repair Partner – South East.
How would you ‘sell’ your business to prospective capacity acquirers?
We provide a comprehensive service from diagnosis to completion. By offering services that cover every step of the repair process, from initial diagnostics and estimates through to parts procurement, repairs and final inspections and authorisation, we remove all the pressure from the customer.
Our business is also fully supported by the owners, and, rare for a dealer-owned facility, we are enhancing our online presence with a website in development to help us connect with customers in a digital age.
What makes your business ‘award winning’?
The level of technical expertise within our business is exceptional. Our workforce has years of experience and that means our clients feel more confident knowing they’re working with seasoned professionals able to deliver good service and consistent support every time.
We are also an outward-looking business able and willing to adapt and adjust to a changing industry. As part of that, we made some rationalising decisions at the start of the year to be even more flexible and efficient.
We are not afraid of change. We embrace it and are always looking at ways we can do things differently, particularly in relation to the electrification of the market.
How would you describe the industry at present?
There are many factors influencing the industry now, which makes it quite a challenging and unpredictable sector. Not least of these is the drive towards more environmentally-friendly operations, which is being driven by government targets and legislation. As part of that, we are delighted to announce that we have achieved carbon neutrality in accordance with PAS 2060, as declared by ECA Business Energy for the second year in a row.
Electrification is also a significant challenge, especially with uncertainty around how the ZEV Mandate will be applied to vans. Dealerships need to balance EV and ICE sales while still meeting customer demand.
What do you see as your greatest opportunity?
We are dedicated to looking after our clients for life, and the level of support a dealership is able to offer is a comforting option for any customer. We are a one-stop shop for all their needs and they know there is someone on hand to talk to every time. In the event of an incident we can generally provide free courtesy cars or transport to take our customers home or to their place of work, while working with the majority of insurance companies enables us to coordinate repairs with the least possible inconvenience.
Building on the relationships we already have with our customers and developing an even wider customer-base is a great opportunity for us moving forward.
What one issue do you feel will impact the sector most in the coming years?
Across the industry businesses face a constant challenge to keep pace with vehicle technology. That is the technology within vehicles, new technologies around communication with customers, and digitalisation within the supply chain.
On top of this, skills remains an urgent concern with too few young people joining the sector. An aging workforce means the issue is only going to become more severe in the coming years.
What steps are you taking to future-proof the business?
We provide constant technician training to ensure they can continue to handle modern vehicles safely and their qualifications are up to date. Our technicians are fully trained in body work from small dents to major repairs, and we have the latest equipment to make sure all work is carried out to the highest quality.
We are also increasing our apprenticeship teams whilst staying focused on our increased running costs.
Snapshot insights:
- Number of sites: 8
- Approx jobs per week: circa 195
- Number of staff: 121
- Approx work mix: 90% insurance, 5% internal, 3% retail, 2% Warranty
- Paint partner: PPG
- Distribution partner: Morelli
