68% Micro
26% Small
3% Mid
2% Large
1% Mega
INSIGHTS - APRIL 2024
UK Car Retail Industry
UK Car Retail Industry Information
The car sales industry involves the wholesale and retail (including via auction or online) sale of new and second-hand motor vehicles, motorbikes, lorries and trucks, repair and maintenance of vehicles and the sale of parts and accessories.
Active Businesses
73,741
Annual Sales
£256bn +
Employees
578,930
Economic Contribution
£28bn
Tags
Location of Car Retail Companies
Car Retail Companies by Size
Car Retail Companies by Age
29% Young
25% Established
25% Startup
20% Mature
0% New
Oldest Car Retail Companies
Established
Halfords Limited
1909
Fastest Growing Car Retail Companies
35% Declining
24% Healthy
15% Rapid
14% High
11% Low
Fastest Growing Car Retail Companies
3yr CAGR
Cazoo Ltd
917%
Car Retail Industry Competitive Environment - New Entrants vs Leavers
Car Retail Industry Valuation
EBITDA Multiple
Car Retail Industry Valuation
Turnover Multiple
Car Retail Industry Valuation
Net Asset Multiple
Note - from March 2020 multiples are calculated monthly, prior to this they were calculated on an annual basis.
UK Wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles Industry Insights
There are 73,741 active Businesses in the UK with combined annual sales of £256 billion .
The Industry employs around 578,929 people and contributes £28 billion to the economy.
The most popular location for Car Retail companies is South East England with 10,935 and the fewest are located in Northern Ireland with 1,672.
The largest Car Retail company is Ford Motor Company Limited with a turnover of £12bn. 68% of the industry is comprised of Micro companies with only 3% Mid companies.
20% of the Car Retail Industry is made up of 20% Mature but the majority are Young businesses (29%) the oldest company is Haynes Brothers,limited founded in 1896.
Car Retail industry has a number of high growth companies (14%), the fastest growing company is Cazoo Ltd with a 3 year growth rate of 917%. Other fast growing companies include Listers Hull Limited (148%), Shelbourne Motors (Newry) Limited (115%) and Steer Automotive Group Limited (91%).
The UK Car Retail Industry’s valuation has been improving over the past 3 years with a current EBITDA multiple of 8.00x, Turnover multiple of 0.66x and a Net Asset multiple of 2.86x.
