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Inchcape will not be rushed into a sale of its Jaguar and Land Rover franchises despite the uncertainty created by Ford’s decision to dispose of the brands.
“They are all good performing operations. We will sell at the right time and the right price,” said Ken Lee, group communications director.
Inchcape is currently seeking buyers for 47 outlets as it moves to cut down its portfolio from 21 to eight brands.
Lee said the group’s target was to be the “number one or number two” franchise partner for Mercedes, Smart, Audi, VW, BMW, Mini, Toyota, Lexus and Honda across the UK.
Trading performance
He said it would be easier to deliver a high standard of customer service with a smaller portfolio of brands.
Last week Inchcape announced its trading performance was in line with expectations following the smooth integration of European Motor Holdings, which it bought for £263m in December 2006.
The group expressed confidence in its prospects for the rest of the year due to its global spread of operations, unlike Pendragon, the UK’s largest dealer group, which warned profits would drop by £20m in 2007.