Member Reports and Briefings 2024 and earlier
ICDP’s Reports and Management Briefings provide fuller details of individual research topics. They are available for ICDP programme members to download - please insert your username and password when prompted. This page lists our outputs from 2020 to 2024; earlier material is available on request - please refer to our Publications Catalogue for a full guide.
The Omni-Channel Cookbook
by Steve Young Special Report August 2024
Consumer pressures drive the need to offer an omni-channel customer experience for car buyers, and the digitalisation of our industry provides the opportunity to do that. . The report is available to ICDP members to download here, or our other industry friends can request a copy by email through the Project Office projectoffice@icdp.net
We have also produced a short promo video.
OEM channel strategies to preserve their spare parts business in an ageing car parc
by Thomas Chieux Management Briefing 164/23
ICDP often reports on the mega-trends that influence the car aftermarket, and that will impact the sector over the next decade, such as electrification of the car parc, the growing average age and better reliability of cars, their technical complexity, and changes in customer behaviour and expectations. These elements, taken individually, could have positive as well as negative effects on aftersales demand.
Learning from demand management capabilities proven in mainstream retail
by Ben Waller Management Briefing 163/23
As carmakers begin to stabilise supply, the need to better manage new vehicle supply and demand has never been so critical, but still the supply situation is too often viewed as a market outcome rather than a managed strategy. The supply shortage, combined with pent up demand, has led us to higher transaction prices but inevitably, classical economics tells us that as supply recovers, and demand weakens, the resulting transaction price will fall at the higher volume.
The new MVBER: evolution or revolution?
by Andrew Tongue Special Report June 2023
The Motor Vehicle Block Exemption (MVBER), the EU competition rules governing franchise agreements relating to aftersales and spare parts distribution in the automotive sector, have just been refreshed for a further 5 years. In this Special Report, we take a look at the review process, give a reminder of how the rules work, look at the changes being introduced to the Guidelines that accompany the MVBER regulation itself, and give our initial thoughts on the implications for different types of player in the sector. We have also produced a shorter briefing ‘The refreshed MVBER - The European Commission updates its competition guidance around aftersales and spare parts agreements’ available HERE.
Used cars - the neglected child?
by Steve Young Special Report December 2022
In this report, we analyse some of the main markets and leading used car players in Europe, look at what differences exist in some other non-European markets, and in particular focus on why the used car business seems to be the neglected child in automotive retail, overlooked for younger, smarter siblings.
This report is available on request to non ICDP members - please contact projectoffice@icdp.net to obtain a copy.
New freedoms, but within new limits, the emerging implications of the new VBER
by Dr Andrew Tongue Special Report September 2022
Over the past couple of years, we have tracked the review and replacement process of the European Commission’s Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER), the competition rules that govern distribution agreements across all sectors of business, including the automotive industry. The outgoing rules package has been assessed, changes have been proposed, feedback has been gathered, amendments have been made, and the new framework has now taken effect. In this special report, we now turn from a tight focus on tracking the detailed changes to look at the broader implications of the new VBER on the sector, and to compare the opportunities it offers OEMs in how they operate their networks with the new constraints that have been introduced to preserve fair competition.
Development of the professional relationships between the players involved in Europe’s spare parts distribution
by Pascal Wetter and Thomas Chieux MB 162/22
The changes in the industry affecting the aftermarket have a clear impact on all stakeholders, regardless of size or positioning in the value chain or within parts supply systems. Change is mainly driven by the gradually decreasing market size in volume and rather stable in value as a result of increasing product quality and increasing penetration of safety features, besides alternative powertrains. The need for high investment in equipment and technical skills to cope with the ‘new normal’ in particular puts repairers under pressure, whilst changing customer behaviour and more (toughened) regulations will further limit the scope for earnings. However, the fact that change is happening in an evolutionary way suggests that it is not too late for the sector to adapt, but this must happen now.
The 2030 aftermarket: are we getting closer to the abyss?
by Christophe Guillaneuf MB 161/22
The automotive aftermarket faces multiple challenges through changes in behaviour and technology. These pressures are not new, but arguably have reached new peaks over the last few years. In an effort to track how these changes will impact the overall size and value of the market, ICDP has produced projections periodically for over a decade, and this briefing reports on the main outputs of our latest aftermarket simulation round. We first deal with the evolution of the aftermarket size and value since 2017, and provides an assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the number of jobs across 5 European markets (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and the UK).
The impact on distribution of new powertrain technology choices ahead for carmakers
by Ben Waller MB 160/22
Previously, we examined the likely impacts of electrification upon franchise dealer network economics, which suggested that with margins offered on EVs being lower than those for ICE, the existing new car business would not be viable once EVs dominate the mix. Equally, whilst used cars and especially EVs are currently highly profitable as demand outstrips supply, once the EV market becomes the mainstream used car market, competition will reduce used car profitability. EVs entering the mainstream will mean a significant reduction in both service value and repair volumes, removing the aftersales cross-subsidy that underpins franchise dealer viability, a loss unlikely to be offset by possible growth in complex bodyshop work. In total, these implications of electrification will force change through breaking the existing franchise distribution model.
The role of aftermarket third party online platforms, and how they affect the customer-repairer relationship
by Andrew Tongue MB 159
Many different sectors have seen ‘disruption’ in recent years as online platforms have emerged to link customers and providers, bringing choice and transparency for the former, and helping the latter to expand their reach, although sometimes at the cost of squeezed margins. The automotive aftermarket has been no exception, with platforms across the different European markets offering customers the ability to receive and compare quotes for service and repair jobs, evaluate available repairers, and then make a booking.
Are independent repairers sufficiently robust to face the challenges ahead?
by Christophe Guillaneuf MB 158
Across Europe, the installed circulating car parc is almost 300 million light vehicles (Number of PCs and LCVs (less than 3.5 tons) circulating in EU-27 + EFTA). As European owners tend to keep cars longer, the average age of the passenger car parc grows steadily and now stands at just over 11 years (Source: ACEA). Together these mean that new technologies take time to infiltrate the parc and, therefore changes in the aftermarket tend to happen slowly. However, recently a number of pressures emerged and challenged all aftermarket players with independent players being - maybe - less exposed to some of these pressures because of their core business being focused mainly on the older car parc
Une approche des réseaux Européens en partant d’une «page blanche»
de Steve Young Un rapport spécial de l’ICDP 2021
Il est aujourd’hui généralement admis que les réseaux européens de distribution automobile vont connaître des changements majeurs au cours des cinq prochaines années sous l’effet d’une vision partagée par l’ensemble des constructeurs selon laquelle ils doivent proposer à leurs clients une offre omnicanale intégrant à la fois des canaux de vente physiques et des canaux de vente virtuels.
Si vous n’êtes pas membre de l’ICDP mais souhaitez une copie électronique de ce rapport, veuillez envoyer un e-mail à projectoffice@icdp.net
A ‘clean slate’ approach to European distribution networks
by Steve Young Special Report 2021
‘Clean slate’ - if you had none of the legacy constraints, what might an omni-channel retail model for cars look like, and could you then apply some of that thinking to an established network? In this public report, we summarise some of the key findings. Members can download the report with their username and password. If you are not a member of ICDP but would like an e-copy of this report, please send an email to projectoffice@icdp.net
The French Dealer of Tomorrow
By Christophe Guillaneuf MB 157
This briefing is the summary of a comprehensive report issued in January 2021 by ICDP in partnership with the car dealer branch of the CNPA (The main French automotive trade association dealing with the downstream distribution chain) entitled “Le concessionnaire français de demain” (i.e. “The French dealer of tomorrow”).
Developing the near term dealer model
By Steve Young MB 156
The future of the dealer model has featured highly in ICDP’s research over many years, most recently in our Dealer of Tomorrow and ‘clean slate’ work. Both of these had a focus on what might happen in the 2025-2030 timeframe, but the dealer model has come under renewed scrutiny in recent months due to the Covid-19 related pressures on the whole industry.
Will regulation succeed in creating a level playing field
in the continued battle for access to in-vehicle data?
Andrew Tongue MB 155
This Briefing illustrates how the ecosystem around the connected car is developing, and how the number of stakeholders who will be needing to work with in-vehicle data is growing. We then focus on the latest state of play in the European-level regulatory debate around access to in-vehicle data and resources, which has seen the opposing positions of the OEMs and the independent aftermarket lobby become increasingly entrenched, and ask the question of whether a solution can be seen on the horizon. We conclude on the steps that traditional customer-facing players in the sector need to take to help customers to step into the world of the connected car
Independent service chains in Europe: time for a new strategy
Thomas Chieux MB 154
The scope for this research on service chains covered the top five European markets, plus Belgium and the Netherlands and we analysed three types of chains:
Tyre specialist chains (e.g. Euromaster) – please note that small independent tyre fitters are not included
Fast-fit chains (e.g. Kwik Fit, Midas) that are focused on quick fit operations
Auto-centres (e.g. Norauto, Feu Vert) that are basically a fast-fit workshop run together with a self-service shop selling parts and accessories
Independent online platforms: could we see a Booking.com-type operator emerging in the automotive aftermarket?
Thomas Chieux MB 153
Independent online platforms, especially ‘front office’ ones that offer services bringing together customers and repairers, have been growing across the aftermarket in recent years. This Briefing looks at where the limits to this growth might lie over the years ahead, and specifically, at the question of whether we might see the emergence of a sector-dominant Booking.com-type player in automotive repair and maintenance.