The German brand will abandon the car sales scheme through intermediaries
BMW intends in the foreseeable future to abandon the sale of cars through intermediaries represented by dealers. The new scheme for selling cars directly through the automaker will radically solve the problem of markups and the installation of additional equipment in car dealerships, said Nicolas Peter, financial director of the Bavarian brand. According to plans, it will be launched in 2024, but at first only MINI models will be offered “from the factory”, and from 2026 direct sales will also be extended to BMW.
The abandonment of traditional dealerships will occur gradually. BMW already has a “constructive dialogue” with dealers, Peter said, to offer customers the opportunity to order cars directly from the manufacturer.
The new scheme assumes that the buyer will be able to choose a car from the assembled copies available at the factory or place an order for a specific configuration with the options he needs specifically. Accordingly, there will be no dealer margins for “dopa”. Car dealerships will also perform the function of issuing a car to a client and engage in after-sales service.
Mercedes-Benz also announced a phased transition to direct sales of cars from the factory: the company will reduce the dealer network in Germany by 15-20 percent in the coming years. Now Mercedes-Benz has 6.5 thousand sales points around the world, a thousand of which are located in Germany. Most of them will be retrained as “agents” by 2025, that is, they will receive a commission from the sale of a car, but will not invest in advertising.
The abandonment of traditional dealerships will occur gradually. BMW already has a “constructive dialogue” with dealers, Peter said, to offer customers the opportunity to order cars directly from the manufacturer.
The new scheme assumes that the buyer will be able to choose a car from the assembled copies available at the factory or place an order for a specific configuration with the options he needs specifically. Accordingly, there will be no dealer margins for “dopa”. Car dealerships will also perform the function of issuing a car to a client and engage in after-sales service.
Mercedes-Benz also announced a phased transition to direct sales of cars from the factory: the company will reduce the dealer network in Germany by 15-20 percent in the coming years. Now Mercedes-Benz has 6.5 thousand sales points around the world, a thousand of which are located in Germany. Most of them will be retrained as “agents” by 2025, that is, they will receive a commission from the sale of a car, but will not invest in advertising.
With the transition to a new scheme for buying cars, dealers’ income will decrease. One option to keep them at the same level could be the expansion of services.
