BMW Group is planning a radical change in the way it sells new vehicles on the European continent. The automaker will introduce a direct sales model in the next few years, which should make the process of buying a new BMW or Mini more transparent and easier for the customer. That doesn’t mean there won’t be dealerships involved though – and BMW Group Sales and Marketing Director Pieter Nota recently provided more insight into how the new approach will work.
BMW calls this new way of selling cars an agency model. As part of this strategy, BMW will bill customers directly and dealers will receive a fixed fee for each sale – and customers will benefit from the same prices wherever the new sales model operates. The company believes this new method will benefit all three parties involved in the process of buying a new vehicle. BMW also says there has been a misunderstanding about how this new sales process works.
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But when will this new experience begin? BMW Group will pioneer this with the Mini brand in 2024, followed by the BMW brand around two years later. For now, this agency model will only be applied to European markets, with no word on whether BMW will also implement this business practice in the United States.
“We will improve the customer experience and provide an attractive business model for our agents, while gaining direct access to the customer. These are the three most important aspects of our plans,” said Pieter Nota. Automotive News in a recent interview.
Mini, the BMW Group’s British brand for small vehicles, is already preparing for the new agency model. Nota told the online publication, however, that the brand is not a guinea pig “that we could do and then do better at BMW two years later.” The new structures and IT development that will support this major change are already “very advanced” and there seems to be no turning back – whether you like it or not, BMW will soon sell you a new BMW or Mini at a fixed price and will pay its dealers a commission for each transaction. Doesn’t sound bad, right?
BMW Group is planning a radical change in the way it sells new vehicles on the European continent. The automaker will introduce a direct sales model in the next few years, which should make the process of buying a new BMW or Mini more transparent and easier for the customer. That doesn’t mean there won’t be dealerships involved though – and BMW Group Sales and Marketing Director Pieter Nota recently provided more insight into how the new approach will work.
BMW calls this new way of selling cars an agency model. As part of this strategy, BMW will bill customers directly and dealers will receive a fixed fee for each sale – and customers will benefit from the same prices wherever the new sales model operates. The company believes this new method will benefit all three parties involved in the process of buying a new vehicle. BMW also says there has been a misunderstanding about how this new sales process works.
16 Pictures
But when will this new experience begin? BMW Group will pioneer this with the Mini brand in 2024, followed by the BMW brand around two years later. For now, this agency model will only be applied to European markets, with no word on whether BMW will also implement this business practice in the United States.
“We will improve the customer experience and provide an attractive business model for our agents, while gaining direct access to the customer. These are the three most important aspects of our plans,” said Pieter Nota. Automotive News in a recent interview.
Mini, the BMW Group’s British brand for small vehicles, is already preparing for the new agency model. Nota told the online publication, however, that the brand is not a guinea pig “that we could do and then do better at BMW two years later.” The new structures and IT development that will support this major change are already “very advanced” and there seems to be no turning back – whether you like it or not, BMW will soon sell you a new BMW or Mini at a fixed price and will pay its dealers a commission for each transaction. Doesn’t sound bad, right?