Latest news with #RobertForrester
Daily Mail
25-06-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Vertu Motors new car sales growth offsets drop in second hand demand
Bristol Street Motors owner Vertu Motors has hailed strong trading against a difficult market backdrop. Britain's fourth-biggest automotive retailer reported new car volumes rose by 7 per cent on a like-for-like basis in the three months ending May, compared to 5.6 per cent growth across the UK retail market. Comparable fleet and commercial vehicle volumes expanded by 3 per cent despite the UK commercial van market experiencing a decline, while the firm's high-margin service revenues increased by 4.1 per cent. However, like-for-like motability volumes remained depressed, plunging by 23.2 per cent due to market share continuing to shift away from traditional manufacturers. Meanwhile, weaker customer demand and tight supply led to a 3.8 per cent decline in used vehicle volumes. However, used car margins improved from 7.3 to 7.5 per cent during the period. Vertu also said it achieved higher gross profits in its service and parts divisions during the period and its adjusted pre-tax profits were better year-on-year. Following the performance, the Gateshead-based company expects its annual results to be commensurate with forecasts. Robert Forrester, chief executive of Vertu, said: 'Since the beginning of the financial year, a period which includes the important trading month of March, the group has traded well in a challenging macro-economic environment.' But he added: 'This encouraging start to the year is balanced by ongoing headwinds of a challenging consumer and business environment and the Government's ZEV mandate promoting accelerated electric car adoption.' Under the ZEV mandate, automakers must sell a minimum percentage of battery electric vehicles each year in order to reduce the number of cars on the road with internal combustion engines. To avoid fines for not meeting targets, manufacturers can borrow credits from future years or purchase them from carmakers who are complying with the rules. For the current year, 28 per cent of new car sales and 16 per cent of vans have to be zero-emission. By 2030, it must be 80 per cent for cars and 70 per cent for vans. Many automobile manufacturers have criticised the rules for being too ambitious and warned that they could lead to redundancies or billions in lost investment. In early February, Vertu claimed the mandate was causing 'disruption' to the UK new car market and called on the UK Government to introduce 'significant' incentives to boost battery EV demand. Founded in 2006, Vertu operates 195 franchised sales outlets that sell a wide array of famous brands, including Audi, Hyundai, Nissan and Volkswagen. Vertu Motors shares were 0.5 per cent higher at 62.5p by late Wednesday afternoon but have fallen by around 19 per cent over the past year.
The Herald Scotland
25-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Herald Scotland
Vertu reports bounce in new car sales from last year's lows
However, Vertu outperformed in like-for-like new car sales which grew by 7%, compared to growth of 5.6% across the wider market. This followed what the group described in May as "the lowest new retail car market for 25 years" during the 12 months to the end of February. Chief executive Robert Forrester said the group has traded well since the beginning of the new financial year in what has been a "challenging macro-economic environment". "New retail volumes are up materially with the group benefiting from market share gains, and our high margin aftersales business continues its out-performance," he said. "This encouraging start to the year is balanced by ongoing headwinds of a challenging consumer and business environment and the government's ZEV mandate promoting accelerated electric car adoption." Vertu, which has 197 sales and servicing outlets across the UK, said high margin revenues from its after sales departments were up by 4.1% on the same period a year earlier. Fleet and commercial sales grew by 3%. All told, the group said pre-tax profits for the first quarter will be ahead of last year. No details on the numbers were given. Vertu announced in May that annual profit for the previous year had fallen by 15.8% to £29.3 million on revenues of £4.8 billion. The limited supply of used vehicles stemming from new car supply shortages in the wake of the pandemic contributed to the resilience of wholesale used car prices during the year. But while this supply shortage initially raised expectations for improved margins in used vehicle sales, subdued consumer confidence dampened this impact. Shares in Vertu were little changed as of mid-day trading. Scotland's national bank invests millions more in Utopi Jonathan Burridge, chief executive of Utopi, flanked by Lynsey McCulloch and Richard Skillen of the Scottish National Investment Bank (Image: Nick Mailer)
Times
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- Times
Electric car revolution needs a spark
Such is the culture war around the electric car revolution that any new statistic is taken by either the pro or anti lobby as immutable evidence that the other side is being proved wrong. Expressing an actual opinion can feel like being doused in battery acid. Robert Forrester is one of the few people who actually knows what is going on. And as the chief executive of Vertu Motors, the last big new car retailer still listed on the London Stock Exchange, he actually has a duty to share that knowledge. Forrester, as it turns out, is on both sides of the argument. • Vertu Motors issues profit warning, blaming zero-emission mandate On Wednesday Vertu reported a drop in profits directly resulting from the electric
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Vertu Motors cuts jobs and Sunday opening after budget and electric car target hits
The country's third largest car retailer says it is cutting jobs and closing its dealerships on a Sunday as part of efforts to cut costs amid tough trading and looming budget tax hikes. Vertu Motors, which has almost 200 sites operating predominantly under the Bristol Street Motors, Vertu and Macklin Motors brands, made the announcement while revealing an unscheduled profit warning. The company said its bottom line had taken a big hit amid steep discounting industry wide in a bid to meet a government target for sales of new electric vehicles - the so-called ZEV mandate. Money latest: Vertu, which employs 8000 staff, also pointed to a £10m rise in costs from budget tax rises due to take effect in April. The ZEV mandate is the main gripe for the new car industry. It demands a rising proportion of total sales come from zero-emission vehicles each year. It was 22% in 2024 and rises to 28% this year. There are currently stiff penalties for missing that target. It was missed last year amid the tough economy and industry pressure has forced a review. The government has been looking at what help it can give to aid the transition since Vauxhall's owner moved to cut costs by announcing plans to close its Luton plant in April. Vertu warned on Thursday that because price cuts to attract sceptical electric buyers were likely to continue this year, it expected further pressure on margins and for sales volumes to remain depressed given the continuing squeeze on household budgets. Read more:Electric car demand hits record high but misses targetVauxhall parent very clear on why Luton plant is closing The exact numbers of jobs affected by the company's spending cuts was unclear. It is understood that while a small number of roles have already been axed, Vertu would not seek to fill jobs vacated through natural churn in the months ahead. Vertu said it expected £4m in one-off costs to aid its long-term savings. Those costs also included a move to bring all its brands under the Vertu name. The company said in its statement that adjusted profit before tax for the year ending 28 February 2025 would be "significantly below current market expectations". That consensus figure stood at £34.5m in December. Shares fell by more than 7%. Robert Forrester, Vertu's chief executive, told investors: "The Group's high margin aftersales business is performing strongly. "However, the Government's ZEV Mandate is causing severe disruption to the UK new car market, and the consumer environment is subdued." "The Government and the industry need to get together to address the root cause of the issues to allow the automotive sector in the UK to return to its traditional role of stimulating economic growth, which is a catalyst for employment."
Sky News
06-02-2025
- Automotive
- Sky News
Vertu Motors cuts jobs and Sunday opening after budget and electric car target hits
The country's third largest car retailer says it is cutting jobs and closing its dealerships on a Sunday as part of efforts to cut costs amid tough trading and looming budget tax hikes. Vertu Motors, which has almost 200 sites operating predominantly under the Bristol Street Motors, Vertu and Macklin Motors brands, made the announcement while revealing an unscheduled profit warning. The company said its bottom line had taken a big hit amid steep discounting industry wide in a bid to meet a government target for sales of new electric vehicles - the so-called ZEV mandate. Vertu, which employs 8000 staff, also pointed to a £10m rise in costs from budget tax rises due to take effect in April. The ZEV mandate is the main gripe for the new car industry. It demands a rising proportion of total sales come from zero-emission vehicles each year. It was 22% in 2024 and rises to 28% this year. There are currently stiff penalties for missing that target. 2:35 It was missed last year amid the tough economy and industry pressure has forced a review. The government has been looking at what help it can give to aid the transition since Vauxhall's owner moved to cut costs by announcing plans to close its Luton plant in April. Vertu warned on Thursday that because price cuts to attract sceptical electric buyers were likely to continue this year, it expected further pressure on margins and for sales volumes to remain depressed given the continuing squeeze on household budgets. 0:56 The exact numbers of jobs affected by the company's spending cuts was unclear. It is understood that while a small number of roles have already been axed, Vertu would not seek to fill jobs vacated through natural churn in the months ahead. Vertu said it expected £4m in one-off costs to aid its long-term savings. Those costs also included a move to bring all its brands under the Vertu name. The company said in its statement that adjusted profit before tax for the year ending 28 February 2025 would be "significantly below current market expectations". That consensus figure stood at £34.5m in December. Shares fell by more than 7%. Robert Forrester, Vertu's chief executive, told investors: "The Group's high margin aftersales business is performing strongly. "However, the Government's ZEV Mandate is causing severe disruption to the UK new car market, and the consumer environment is subdued."
