Vanarama has traditionally been known as a market-leader in national on-line commercial vehicle leasing, a strong sector, which has a seen 16.7% increase in the last year. Recently, however, it took the decision to franchise Vanarama with regional CV sales experts and offer its services to those customers who still have an inherent mistrust of buying over the Internet.
Comments Andy Alderson, Autorama managing director, “There are franchised dealers out there who have commercial vehicles as part of their range, but their focus is often diluted by car sales. They simply may not have the time or budget to focus on vans. Our whole philosophy and business focus is dedicated to offering impartial advice on vans from a number of the leading manufacturers.”
Despite the macro-economic gloom, commercial vehicles are one area where small businesses can benefit from the finance houses. “SMEs, from builders to gardeners, rely on their vehicle and won’t risk business downtime with an unreliable van - they want to invest and the financiers want to lend to them,” says Andy, “For the SME it makes good commercial sense to lease a vehicle. As it is a commercial vehicle it can be 100 per cent off-set against tax, meanwhile, the finance company is safe in the knowledge that the loan is secured against an asset.”
The first eight Vanarama franchisees will cover Basildon, Ilford, Romford, Milton Keynes, Bedford, Barnet, Dunstable and Northampton. Vanarama hopes to expand its network to 25 franchises by the end of the year.
Andy Alderson concludes: “We take pride in recruiting specialist CV sales experts with an in-depth knowledge of vans. We are not tied to a manufacturer so our franchisees need diverse product knowledge of a range of marques. While we are aiming for 25 franchisees by the end of the year, our focus is sustainable growth with quality people.”
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*There has been a 16.7% increase in the commercial vehicle market, with an average increase of 13%in each of the last three years in the amount of LCVs ‘purchased’
