The brand new managing director at AM100 motor retailer Howards Motor Group says a deal with aftersales and finance renewals will assist his staff construct on the group’s profitable 2022, even when some shoppers are watching their prices fastidiously.
Chris Lee was formally promoted to the MD position earlier this month, 25 years after he joined the Weston-super-Mare based mostly enterprise as an apprentice technician.
Within the subsequent years, he labored his means via quite a few roles within the firm, turning into franchise director and, latterly, operations director since mid-2021.
Having grown revenues to £170 million in 2022 and maintained profitability in keeping with the prior 12 months, Howards Motor Group is optimistic a couple of strong end in 2023 too.
“There’s all the time a outcome available. There’s positively this mindset with us, that by working sensible with our aftersales prospects and dealing on buyer and car lifetime worth in our finance renewals, we will keep good enterprise even when the market is in a really troublesome state,” mentioned Lee.
Lee’s promotion concludes a restructure of Howards’ senior staff.
It now consists of retail operations administrators Danny Avenue, Tony Lippe and Stuart Waterproof coat, all promoted from inside the enterprise, and advertising and marketing director Louise Devine, additionally promoted inside the firm, whereas group head of communications and requirements Chris Lynch was recruited from Peugeot UK and chief monetary officer Mark Eggar joined from insurance coverage agency WPA.
Jonathan Coleman (left in image), son of group chairman Peter Coleman (proper in image), has additionally joined the board as govt director, having labored within the enterprise since he was aged 16.
Peter Haynes, who retired from the managing director position on the finish of 2022, is now a non-executive director.
Coleman mentioned: “It’s an thrilling time for Howards and the trade generally. Chris is a gifted, dynamic and enthusiastic chief who’s ideally positioned to drive the each day efficiency of our enterprise. Having robust and clear management will actually guarantee we will carry out to our full potential as a enterprise throughout a interval of trade change and enterprise growth.”
Lee has a wealth of expertise inside the trade and has had full operational management of the enterprise since late 2021 & all through 2022, a interval of remarkable efficiency for the group.
Having been a part of Howards Group for 25 years inside varied key roles, he’s exceptionally positioned to proceed to steer and steer the enterprise via this subsequent interval with a strategic plan targeted on progress and delivering good outcomes for purchasers, together with an distinctive buyer expertise, mentioned Coleman.
Lee added: “I’m delighted to have formally taken on the position of managing director for the group, in what’s an thrilling interval of progress for our enterprise.
“In preparation for this transition, I’ve restructured and added to our exceptionally gifted senior management staff over the previous 12 months to make sure that we now have unparalleled power and dynamic vitality to speed up our efficiency in all areas.
“Folks, processes and guaranteeing that we engineer our buyer choices to satisfy their diverse preferences is essential to our success, along with persevering with rising and nurturing {our relationships} with our producer companions.”
Lee advised AM that Howards Motor Group, which ranked 92 in the newest AM100 and which holds franchises for Citroen, DS, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, MG, Nissan, Peugeot, Suzuki and Toyota, has had “a extremely good begin to 2023” and is constructive in regards to the months forward.
“Our ahead order financial institution for almost all of our manufacturers places us in actually fine condition.
“The manufacturers are starting to stretch on their numbers now, and we’re very a lot right into a progress interval which is an fascinating one while you add within the dynamic that the inventory state of affairs continues for a lot of of them.
“I feel it might be a way more aggressive March, way more so than we’ve seen over the past three or 4 plate modifications.”