Research from Close Brothers Motor Finance reveals that nearly all UK car dealers (98%) are confident about the business outlook for their dealership, whilst almost two thirds (63%) are ‘very confident’.
Despite a difficult 2019 for the motor industry, the findings paint a picture of business optimism. In the aftermath of Britain’s exit from the EU, a third of dealers (35%) see Brexit as the biggest threat to their business over the next 12 months, a significant drop of 12% from the previous three months (at 47%).
Contrastingly, under a tenth (9%) see Brexit as the biggest opportunity, a drop from 13% in the past three months, indicating dwindling interest in the Brexit story.
The research also reveals that 13% of dealers are especially positive about the opportunities for business growth. Dealers cited a range of opportunities in 2020, with 7% expanding their offering to new types of vehicles, namely electric cars, and 7% keen to maintain stability.
On the flip side, a tenth (9%) of dealers are concerned about how economic downturn will affect their business, and 7% worry about stock availability.
