Motor dealer completes £2m Jaguar Land Rover deal

THE appeal of Jaguar Land Rover to motor dealers has been further underlined with a second major trade deal in the space of a month.

Franchised dealer Cambria has strengthened its national portfolio with the £2.1m acquisition of the trade and assets of the Jaguar and Land Rover franchise in South Woodford, North London from Pendragon Premier, a subsidiary of Nottingham-based Pendragon.

The deal follows last month’s acquisition by Jardine of the £80m-turnover Colliers Group; the deal done so Jardine could expand its network of JLR dealers.

The Pendragon Premier business has a sales facility in South Woodford and an Aftersales facility in Hainault, Essex operating from leasehold premises.  

Cambria said part of the appeal was that the territory had great potential for the Jaguar and Land Rover franchises and complements the group’s existing Jaguar and Land Rover footprint.  

The group now operates five Jaguar and four Land Rover dealerships under the Grange trading name.

The acquisition comprises £2.0m of goodwill, £0.1m for fixed assets, £0.1m for used vehicle stock, £0.2m for parts stock with the remaining £0.3m deduction in consideration for customer deposits transferred and apportionments.  The acquisition is being funded from Cambria’s existing facilities.

The Pendragon Premier dealership’s unaudited management accounts for Jaguar and Land Rover for the year ended December 31, 2015 show revenue of £44.4m and Cambria said it estimated that pre-tax profit for the same period would be around £0.7m.

It said it expected the new dealership to be earnings enhancing in the financial year to August 31, 2017.

Cambria has already told JLR that it will relocate the business to a new dealership facility that will be compliant with the JLR Arch Corporate Identity Concept.  The lease on the current showroom facility has nine years remaining and therefore it will be sublet for approximately six years while Cambria is not in occupation.  

Following this transaction, the Cambria group extends to 31 dealerships, representing 46 franchises and 17 brands across the UK.
Mark Lavery, CEO of Cambria, said: “We are pleased to have acquired this Jaguar and Land Rover franchise, which complements and enhances the group’s existing Jaguar Land Rover businesses.  

“The acquisition represents continued delivery of the strategy to develop our portfolio of premium and high luxury franchises in strategic locations by acquiring businesses that are earnings enhancing.”