MCCARTHY FEATURE

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2 www.southafricamag.com

3www.southafricamag.com

a n d s t i l l a c c e l e r a t i n g


The Rolls-Royce ‘Silver Ghost’ had been on road three years and Henry Ford’s ‘Model T’ two, when a small business that was to become

one of South Africa’s pre-eminent auto dealers, opened in Durban.

This was 1910, and the name of one fork of the McCarthy Group’s patrimony will ring bells in any English heart nostalgic over a vanished industrial heyday – the ‘Coventry and Birmingham Motor and Cycle Company.’

A century later and McCarthy posts a turnover of R18 billion, selling 85,000 vehicles across 32 brands and a network of 120 outlets.

In 2009 - one of the worst trading periods in auto sector history - McCarthy dealers took three ‘Dealer of the Year’ awards. “Superior levels of customer satisfaction played an important role in the judging,” says McCarthy

CEO Brand Pretorius.McCarthy is strong on

customer satisfaction – ‘The Value Leader You Can Trust.’ “We put enormous emphasis on quality, value and service, and our ultimate objective is to become the ‘First Choice’ through the eyes of our

customers. And because we’ve been around for 100 years, we’ve managed to earn the trust of the majority of motorists in South Africa,” says Pretorius.

McCarthyMcCarthy and cars. Inseparable for 100 years.

At Volkswagen and McCarthy we share the same passion for cars and commitment to our customers, making it no coincidence that we’ve worked successfully together decade after decade. From all at Volkswagen, congratulations on a century of service to the South African automotive industry.

Thank you for making Volkswagen as much a part of your family as you are of ours.

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Trust, as he observes, tends to be a scarce commodity in the motor retail sector. “But we believe we have a good reputation and this is backed up by market research. We enjoy the confi dence and trust of South African motorists who see buying a new or used car from McCarthy as a no-risk purchase.”

Highly sensitive to economic fl ux, auto retailing reacted suddenly and severely to the economic turmoil of late 2008. And with South Africa moving into its fi rst recession in 17 years, McCarthy had no option says Pretorius, but to rationalise, consolidate and cut costs, asset base and inventory levels – the latter by R400 million. Twenty eight branches were shut and the 7,800 pay roll cut by 1,000.

“We were forced into survival mode, and I believe we weathered the storm better than most. We kept our heads down and continued to focus on the fundamentals of our business - customer satisfaction and the retention of our talented people.” Another strategy was to reduce reliance on new vehicle sales in a collapsing market while reinforcing used vehicle trading and after sales and fi nancial services.

So far this year things are going better than anticipated, says the 62 year old CEO, with the fi rst quarter signifi cantly more buoyant than forecast at the time of the last annual report. New vehicle sales in the fi rst quarter increasing by 20% over the same period in 2009.


CITROËN AND McCARTHY SUPPORT CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY

In a difficult economic climate and in a period of changing automotive trends, uses and new relationships between customers and brands, Citroën is preparing for the future and allocating the resources needed to best respond to the challenges facing the automotive industry.

With an existing car park of 25000 customers, Citroën has established an initial network of 15 new dealerships nationwide, of which five belong to the McCarthy Group. Seven exciting and innovative models in the range, and more to come, give dealers the utmost potential to increase this car park and satisfy customer requirements.

With an extensive history in the Retail Motor Industry, the McCarthy Group, is one of the oldest and most renowned names in South Africa with a proud history that spans over 100 years. They are known for their values of ethical, open and transparent business dealings with staff members that are totally committed to their customers which encapsulates the Citroën principals of pride, technology and optimism.

‘Existing and future Citroën owners can look forward to not only an enhanced level of support in 2010 but also exciting new models which symbolize our core values of innovation and creativity’ says Citroën’s Managing Director Frederic Chapuis. ‘Improved customer service will continue to be a key part of our strategy ‘, he added.

The McCarthy Group and Citroën have a common goal – to succeed in the South African market place by not only offering excellent products but aftersales support of the same calibre. A policy of strengthened range of servicing incuding warranty, maintenance and service contracts, extensive network training course, the development of operational standards, regular measurement of performance and servicing as well as specific focus on parts availability and costing will ensure enhanced customer relations and an incredibly satisfying brand experience !

www.citroen.co.za

CRéATIVE TECHNOLOGIE

CITROËN Fourways 011 467 9340 Currie Road, off Monte Casino Boulevard, Fourways • CITROËN East Rand 011 841 3200 Bentel Street Entrance No.3, Boksburg • CITROËN Woodmead 011 800 9300 14 Waterval Cresent, Woodmead Ext 5 • CITROËN JHB South 011 682 4000 5 Skukuza Road, Bassonia • CITROËN Vereeniging 016 422 1115 Rossini Boulevard, Vanderbijlpark, Vereeniging • CITROËN Hatfield 012 369 9800 1204 Pretorius Street, Cnr Duncan Road, Hatfield • CITROËN Cape Town 021 413 9888 Cnr Hertzog Blvd & Oswald Pirow Str, Cape Town • CITROËN Tygervalley 021 910 7272 288 Durban Road, Tygervalley • CITROËN Umhlanga 031 575 9000 192 Ridge Road, Umhlanga Rocks • CITROËN Pinetown 031 716 5000 115 Old Main Road, Pinetown • CITROËN East London 043 726 8976 5a Devereux Avenue, Vincent, East London • CITROËN Polokwane 015 287 9660 106 Landros Mare Street, Polokwane • CITROËN Nelspruit 013 757 7000 Cnr Emnotweni Ave & Cascades Close, Riverside Park, Nelspruit • CITROËN Bloemfontein 051 447 5332 145 Church Street, Bloemfontein

ALLOW US TO INTRODUCE YOU TO THE CITROËN FAMILY.

EURO

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CITROËN C5 From R369 000*

CITROËN C1From R109 500*

NEW CITROËN C3From R159 900*

CITROËN C3 PICASSOFrom R199 900*

CITROËN C4From R216 000*

CITROËN C4 PICASSOFrom R230 000*

Contact your nearest dealer below for incredible launch specials or SMS “CITROEN” to 31155 to book a test drive. CITROËN South Africa is now fully backed by the manufacturer and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of CITROËN France.

*Recommended Retail price include VAT. Prices subject to change without prior notice and valid at the time of going to print. Terms and conditions apply. Visuals for illustration purposes only.


The McCarthy Group’s journey of unprecedented growth began in the mid-nineteen seventies, with 1972 sales of R44-m soaring to R661-m a decade late.

Then in 2000 and 2001 under the leadership of Brand Pretorius, McCarthy underwent extensive capital restructuring, with a return to single-minded focus on the core motor and allied financial services business.

Six years ago another Pretorius initiative saw McCarthy become a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Bidvest Group. Record trading figures, sterling financial results, and rapid growth followed.

McCarthy is the industry leader in skills and technical training as well as in the assessment of automotive NQF qualifications. Its involvement with training, upskilling and upliftment programmes such that McCarthy is sometimes referred to as the ‘University of the SA Retail Motor Industry.’

Group investment in all aspects of training exceeds R10-million a year and its reputation for training excellence is such that several major manufacturers and retail groups entrust the technical training on their vehicles to McCarthy’s own trainers.

The McCarthy Automotive Artisan Academy provides training for more than 900 learners a year in the technical trades - with the great majority from previously disadvantaged

backgrounds. Employing an average of 600 learners, the Group has run its own artisan training centre for more than 50 years, with the Academy completing an average of 12,000 man training days each year.

“We are very fortunate in having so many very loyal, very competent and committed employees,” says Brand Pretorius.

“An integral part of the McCarthy culture is to care about employees, to nurture them, to make a disproportionate investment in their development. I believe this creates engaged employees who have a sense of belonging.

“Although we are a big company we still see ourselves as a family business, and we try and live according to those values - where people are not numbers and their contribution is acknowledged. The buildings play a small role. It’s the people, what they do and how they treat their customers. That’s what it’s all about.”

But McCarthy does not operate within a self-contained corporate world. The Group has a strong focus on social responsibility and was the instigator and thereafter a major sponsor of one of the country’s most successful rural educational initiatives - the ‘Rally to Read’ programme. Since 1998 ‘Rally to Read’ has spent over R40-million on improving the quality of education at 650 remote, rural schools.

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www.newfordfi esta.co.za

Finally a car has come along that is uncompromising, uninhibited and unbelievable. From its design, to its drive, the bold and sexy new FordFiesta is the car for now. Available in the trendiest urban colours, 1.4 and 1.6 petrol engines and the economical and powerful 1.6 TDCi. New FordFiesta. This is now.

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income, their ability to purchase new and used vehicles is obviously getting better. We have an excellent spread of franchises and a very good reputation in that segment of the market. We used to call Black buyers members of the emerging market. Now they are the main market.”

Meantime tight consumer credit is inhibiting auto sector sales. “We have to contend with two major factors; the very strict 2006 National Credit Act, and secondly the fact that banks have become very cautious.”

There is a parallel issue. South Africa has a high level of household debt as a percentage of disposable income. Pre-2006 the auto retail sector credit application approval ratio was around 55%. After dropping to below 20% it is now stabilised at about 25%.

“We don’t have a shortage of customers but getting credit in some cases is problematic. But the current situation will only normalise once household debt as a percentage of disposable income gets back to a level of about 50% and not close to 80% where it is now.”

“We see ourselves as a responsible and caring corporate citizen, and for that reason we reach out and involve our employees and suppliers and try to make a difference in the broader South African society. We believe that doing good is also good business.”

Demographics and a new and expanding customer base are opening new sales opportunities. “The growing middle class market is affecting us very positively. The disposable income of Black South Africans in particular has grown quite signifi cantly because of higher levels of education and the integration of Black South Africans into the economic main stream.

“The vehicle ownership ratio among Black South Africans has traditionally been quite low. The world average ratio is 130 vehicles per 1,000 people. In the USA it exceeds 700 vehicles and in Europe about 380.

“For South Africa as a whole we are right on the world average, and for the Back population, 60 per 1,000 – and they represent 70 % of the population. So with more Black people migrating to middle or higher


Brand Pretorius CEO, McCarthy

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102560With the introduction in September

of a Carbon Emissions Tax, effectively raising the price of higher emission vehicles, Pretorius envisages a swing towards smaller, more fuel efficient, and lower emission vehicles. And in time the increasing popularity of hybrids and electric vehicles.

With a very wide franchise portfolio, selling and servicing 32 different brands, Pretorius says he is watching developments very carefully, confident McCarthy will capitalise on all new trends.

“I’ve been a disciple of dedicated customer care initiatives for more than 20 years and would like to believe I was one of the torchbearers for going beyond the extra mile to ensure customers are more than satisfied with their vehicles and dealer support.

“Commitment to service excellence is cardinal to the way our McCarthy dealers do business.” END

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McCarthy Head Offi ce203 Northridge RoadMorningsideDurban

Tel: +27 (031) 268 9200Customer Care Line: 0861 00 88 00

www.mccarthy.co.za

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