“A huge part of getting there is going to be having this omnichannel online experience where most of the cars are going to be sold online,” Smith said.
Omnichannel approaches allow a customer to seamlessly shop and buy vehicles through digital platforms and in stores.
Last month, AutoNation Inc., the nation’s largest new-vehicle retailer, said it plans to spend as much as $220 million to add 20 or more AutoNation USA used-only stores over the next three years, to its current five sites. AutoNation said the new locations will not have large service departments but will include reconditioning centers.
Meanwhile, Penske Automotive Group, the nation’s second-largest new-vehicle retailer, last week said it expects to open three used-only supercenter locations in 2021, and another store in early 2022. The company operates six supercenters in the U.S. and 10 in the United Kingdom, but said in May it had to halt supercenter construction plans this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Like Sonic, Penske also wants enhanced online omnichannel sales capabilities for used vehicles. That could include a separate brand, and more could be announced in the next few quarters, CEO Roger Penske told Automotive News.
Penske has U.S. supercenters under development in Phoenix and near Princeton, N.J., and plans to continue building three to four new centers annually.
“What we want to do is build stores that have service departments and also reconditioning capabilities,” Penske said. “And with that, we think the customer’s stickier. Because remember this is a $15,000 to $16,000 customer, and he needs a place to go. And we feel if he’s sticky and wants to do his work with us, and we have body shop capabilities, we have reconditioning and we have service, it’s a different strategy.”
