Aston Barclay
Aston Barclay is the UK’s leading independent car auction group and is leading the remarketing sector in digital innovation.
Strategic Expansion
With an established market reputation for high levels of customer service, providing vehicle remarketing services to fleet and dealership vendors, Rutland’s strategy was simple; to oversee and facilitate the next phase of Aston Barclay’s development both physical and technological.
In less than two years since acquisition Rutland has assisted Aston Barclay in extending its physical reach by investing in two 18-acre super centre auction sites at Donington Park, East Midlands and Wakefield, West Yorkshire, as well as expanding its capacity at its existing Prees Heath site.
In addition, the extra capacity has provided Aston Barclay with the capability to strengthen its market share within consumer cars and light commercial vehicles by acquiring The Car Buying Group (TCBG) and Independent Motor Auctions (IMA), which has accelerated the wider development of the core business by adding a broad mix of vehicle supply, high calibre digital operations and personnel to Aston Barclay’s existing operations.
Leading Digital Innovation in the Remarketing Sector
From the point of Rutland’s investment Aston Barclay has been at the forefront of a digital revolution within the remarketing sector, initially by launching their innovative Buyer App. This ground-breaking technology, which is market leading and continues to evolve, gave the buyer extensive access to Aston Barclay’s auctions and stock levels, notifying them about relevant stock on sale days as well as live access to video and audio plus the ability to search stock by colour and fuel grade.
The natural progression of Aston Barclay’s technology was the launch of their Vendor App, which enables vendors to target buyers with video messages and promotions, effectively connecting buyers and vendors in both a physical and virtual space.
To further assist buyers when they are buying remotely, Aston Barclay has adopted the revolutionary imaging technology, Gardx Spincar; another technological first for this forward-thinking company. This state-of-the-art software is being rolled out across the Aston Barclay network, transforming the speed and accuracy for buyers searching and locating stock. It gives buyers a 360-degree view of the used car’s exterior and interior with a zoom facility to enable them to take a closer inspection of any part of the car.
Shaping the Future of Car Auctions
Yet, Aston Barclay’s technological development does not stop there as the company has launched a new ‘Digital Solutions’ arm to its remarketing portfolio. The lead product in this new Aston Barclay brand is Aston Barclay Cascade; a joined-up proposition which ‘connects customers to cars’ through a mix of digital and physical remarketing channels.
Cascade combines Aston Barclay’s new e-Valuate, e-Hub, e-Xchange and e-Live products into an end-to-end used vehicle proposition for dealers and leasing vendors, from initial used car appraisal through to wholesale disposal and onward delivery to buyers seamlessly mixing digital and physical channels to optimise results for vendors.
The Rutland investment has been a catalyst to open doors for Aston Barclay. Throughout the physical and technological expansion of Aston Barclay, Rutland has provided strategic support for both the development of the site portfolio and the roll-out of the digital concepts. In addition, Rutland has supported the recruitment of a dynamic management team which includes a good balance of relevant auction, automotive sector and technology skills that have helped to drive better insight and quick decision-making to ultimately deliver these initiatives effectively and in a timely fashion.
Aston Barclay is leading the way in digital innovation and has effectively bridged the gap between the physical auction and the mobile space and is actively shaping the future of the remarketing sector.
” In less than two years since acquisition Rutland has assisted Aston Barclay in extending its physical reach and placed them at the forefront of a digital revolution within the remarketing sector.
