McCarthy CEO Brand Pretorius has welcomed the recent strength in the rand, which has increased consumer purchasing power and thus boosted the company’s sales.
Speaking in Johannesburg about the success of McCarthy’s Call-a-Car, Pretorius said the gap between car prices and salaries was closing rapidly.
The online used vehicle retailer will celebrate its sixth birthday in August, and has announced that it has recorded an approximate R2,5- billion turnover during this period.
Since its inception in August 1997, it has assisted dealers in selling a total of 30 905 vehicles.
According to Pretorius Call-a-Car is currently the largest independent online used vehicle retailer in South Africa and has assisted in selling 6 662 units this financial year — representing more than R660-million worth of sales to its dealers.
“What makes Call-a-Car so unique is that it is not exclusive to any manufacturer, as our range of vehicles includes all makes, models and price categories. One can therefore buy from an entry-level model to a sports car,” said McCarthy Online managing director Lourens Botha.
“Over the past few years, Call-a-Car has played a crucial role in increasing our understanding of used car marketing, sales closing ratios and the implementation of new age technology to satisfy the customers of today, who are technologically literate and looking for added value services.”
Pretorius explained that since the inception of the online used vehicle retailer six years ago, it has had a major impact on the business of McCarthy Motor Holdings.
He added that five years ago, the used vehicle sales throughput per outlet was averaging 267 units per dealer a year — it now stands at 345 units.
Call-a-Car’s contribution makes up 13% of McCarthy’s total retail used vehicle sales, with 70% of these transactions concluded with customers that made contact through the internet. – I-Net Bridge