MyDealerOnline finalized an exclusive partnership with Bendary Car Corp. out of New York on Monday, creating a new distribution agreement that will allow MyDealerOnline to expand to multiple international automotive markets.
Under the agreement, officials explained, the partnership involving Bendary and MyDealerOnline focuses initially on the Middle Eastern and African markets with future expansion planned.
The companies indicated overseas dealers who subscribe to MyDealerOnline will receive immediate access to U.S. auction inventory, technology, resources and support.
“MyDealerOnline is a perfect fit for our long-term growth,” Bendary president Ahmed Bendary said. “Overseas dealers will gain greater access to U.S. auction inventory, $0 brokerage fees and $0 logistics markup.
“Bendary Car Corp. will provide interest-free financing up to 50 percent of the vehicle cost. Also, interest-free financing will continue until the car sells for qualified dealers,” Bendary continued. “This program will add working capital needed to make overseas dealers successful.”
The companies went on to mention the distribution partnership can provide MyDealerOnline with the opportunity to establish dealer relationships throughout the world.
“Our No. 1 goal is to help overseas dealers gain access to U.S. inventory and grow their dealerships,” said Scott Stephens, vice president of business development at MyDealerOnline.
“Export is important to the success of U.S. used-car consignors. They will now have access to thousands of additional overseas buyers,” Stephens went on to say.
For more information, register at www.mydealeronline.com/export or email to [email protected].
Coinciding with the release of its first-quarter performance for its 2016 fiscal year, Copart tapped a new senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer on Tuesday; an executive who will take over the position effective Jan. 4.
Copart’s new CFO will be Jeffrey Liaw, who has served as the chief financial officer of FleetPride, a privately held company that distributes truck and trailer parts nationwide.
Copart also mentioned William Franklin, currently the company’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, will continue his role as executive vice president and be responsible for U.S. operations and shared services.
Executives said Liaw has been with FleetPride since January 2013. From August 2005 to December 2012, Liaw was a principal of TPG Capital Management, a private equity firm.
Liaw earned undergraduate degrees from the University of Texas in 1999, and he earned his MBA from Harvard University in 2005.
Q1 Results
For the three-month span that ended Oct. 31, Copart reported that its revenue, gross margin and net income came in at $288.8 million, $120.9 million and $52.4 million, respectively.
Officials computed these figures represent a decrease in revenue of $1.5 million, or 0.5 percent; a decrease in gross margin of $1.4 million, or 1.2 percent; and a decrease in net income of $0.2 million, or 0.4 percent, respectively, from the same quarter last year.
Copart added fully diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.42 compared to $0.40 last year, an increase of 5.0 percent.
Tender offer for common stock
Also on Tuesday, Copart announced it has commenced a modified “Dutch Auction” tender offer to purchase up to 7,317,073 shares of its common stock at a purchase price not greater than $41.00 nor less than $38.00 per share.
Executives explained the number of shares proposed to be purchased in the tender offer represents approximately 6.1 percent of the approximately 120,236,510 shares of Copart common stock currently outstanding.
Assuming 7,317,073 shares are repurchased at the maximum price of $41.00 per share in the tender offer, the company will repurchase a total of approximately $300.0 million of its common stock in the tender offer. The last reported trading price of Copart common stock on the NASDAQ Global Select Market on Monday was $37.20 per share.
The tender offer will expire at 5 p.m. ET on Dec. 23, unless extended by Copart. Executives mentioned tenders of Copart’s common stock must be made prior to the expiration of the tender offer and may be withdrawn at any time prior to the expiration of the tender offer.
“The tender is subject to conditions and other terms set forth in the tender offer materials that are being distributed to stockholders and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission,” the company said.
On the terms and subject to the conditions of the tender offer, executives added that Copart’s stockholders will have the opportunity to tender some or all of their shares within the $38.00 to $41.00 per share range. Based on the number of shares tendered and the prices specified by the tendering stockholders, Copart will select the lowest purchase price within the price range that will enable it to buy 7,317,073 shares, or such lesser number of shares that are tendered and not withdrawn.
All shares accepted in the tender offer will be purchased at the same price per share even if the stockholder tendered at a lower price,” the company said.
“If stockholders tender more than 7,317,073 shares at or below the purchase price per share, Copart will purchase the shares tendered at or below the determined purchase price by those stockholders, subject to proration and certain other factors,” Copart went on to say.
All of Copart’s directors and executive officers have advised Copart that they do not intend to tender any of their shares in the tender offer.
“None of Copart, its directors and officers, the information agent, or the depositary is making any recommendation to stockholders as to whether to tender or refrain from tendering their shares into the tender offer or as to the purchase price or purchase prices at which stockholders may choose to tender their shares,” executives said.
“Stockholders must make their own decisions as to how many shares they will tender, if any,” they continued. “In so doing, stockholders should read and evaluate carefully the information in the offer to purchase and related letter of transmittal to be distributed to holders of Copart common stock,” they added.
Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems’ fourth appearance on the Triangle Business Journal’s annual Fast 50 list is also its first time coming in at No. 1, representing the top of the top of the fastest-growing private companies in the Raleigh-Durham area.
The company was founded by two software supply chain experts, Steven Norwood and Terry Groves, in 2005.
“We have a long history of growth and profitability,” Norwood said. “Our financial stability in the industry makes us the partner of choice for many service providers such as repossession, skip trace, door knock and auction agents. We are extremely grateful to our employees, customers and partners for helping make us the number one company on this year’s TBJ Fast 50 list.”
The Triangle Business Journal selects and ranks its Fast 50 winners annually based on a formula that counts revenue growth and profitability in the preceding three years – in this case, 2012 through 2014. The results and rankings were analyzed and verified by PwC, an accounting firm.
To find out more about CARS, visit its site here.
KAR Auction Services chairman and chief executive officer Jim Hallett reiterated that it’s unlikely the company will close any more acquisitions before the end of the year even though he described the activity pipeline as “active.”
Hallett expanded on the point during the company’s latest quarterly conference call by stating, “I can tell you that the senior leadership team at KAR has been very much focused on really reviewing our strategy and clearly identifying what we believe fits and also what we believe doesn’t fit within the KAR strategy as we go forward.
“And I would say that probably my major focus right now is on expanding the buyer base and increasing our market share at ADESA,” Hallett added.
The second part of that comment triggered a series of follow-up questions from investment observers who dissected KAR’s third-quarter performance, which included year-over-year gains in revenue (13 percent to $666.7 million), adjusted EBITDA (9 percent to $163.1 million) and net income (10 percent to $52.3 million, or $0.37 per diluted share).
Hallett revisited the moves KAR already has made to boost its market share, including the acquisition of Pittsburgh Auto Auction earlier this year as well as the new facility in the Chicago market expected to open next year after management broke ground back in September. He insisted the company will continue to pursue brick-and-mortar auctions.
“By adding these brick-and-mortar auctions, there is no question as you go into a new market, you pick up new buyers and not only do you pick up new buyers for the physical auction, but there is a direct correlation with online buyers as to where you have the physical presence,” Hallett said. “So we believe that through these physical auctions we pick up the physical buyer and the online buyer.”
He added: “We’ve taken an opportunity to take a look at our buyers at IAA, take a look at our buyers at ADESA and where they overlap and is there an opportunity to get more the buyers from each of those segments buying in the other segment. We’ve absolutely proved that there is an opportunity to bring buyers from one segment to the other.”
Headwinds at IAA
Hallett acknowledged there are some “headwinds” being experienced at Insurance Auto Auctions. Among them during Q3 were a 17-percent rise in the cost of services. Still, IAA managed a 13-percent rise in revenue to $246.2 million in Q3 as gross profit climbed from $82.1 million to $87.3 million.
However, what’s impact IAA’s performance most is the deterioration in scrap metal prices. Hallett outlined some figures to illustrate the drop-off.
He indicated a crushed car body was selling for about $312 in January of last year. By December, the amount declined to approximately $198. Then when KAR’s third quarter closed on Sept. 30, Hallett pinpointed the sales amount at $124, marking a 60-percent decrease during the 21-month span.
That trend left IAA with a 3-percent drop in revenue per vehicle.
“There is no question that the management team and Insurance Auto Auctions are constantly reviewing their fees, and looking at their service offerings and certainly trying to offset the impact of scrap metal prices, but certainly haven't been able to increase the fees to a level where it completely offset the scrap metal prices,” Hallett said.
Yet another headwind Hallett touched on was the difference in currency rates between the U.S., Canada and other nations.
“As you know, the U.S. dollar is very strong compared to foreign currency, and this reduces the value of the local currency for our foreign buyers,” Hallett said. “These buyers are still very active. They’re still bidding. They’re bidding just as much.
“But unfortunately with their currency being devalued, they’re not able to pay as much for the vehicles as they've been able to pay in the past as they compete with the U.S. dollar,” he continued.
Perhaps these conditions might change soon, impacting IAA’s performance potential?
“I think that we’re going to continue to deal with scrap prices here for some time. I think we're going to continue to deal with foreign currency for some time,” Hallett replied.
“The management team at IAA is very focused on continuing to expand its opportunities working with expanding the buyer base and expanding some of the services that we were providing to the insurance companies,” he continued. “One of the areas that we're really focused on right now is the Total Loss Solution that we are working with the insurance companies that can really accelerate the turn times that it takes for a vehicle to come in and make its way back to the marketplace.”
More developments at TradeRev
During his opening comments, Hallett touched on developments associated with TradeRev. ADESA acquired a 50-percent stake in TradeRev last August. Toronto-based TradeRev began offering its services to dealerships in the Carolinas and Florida this summer.
“TradeRev remains a very, very high priority for me, and we’re allocating more resources to support the U.S. rollout,” Hallett said. “In fact, we are now tapping into some of the talent we have within the OPENLANE organization to assist us with the rollout of TradeRev here in the U.S.
“You know, it wasn't that long ago that OPENLANE was rolling out a technology product here in the U.S., and I think they have a lot of experience with rolling out a startup technology company,” he continued.
“I think there is a lot of similarities between the rollout of OPENLANE and TradeRev, and I think where it would be very wise to use that talent we have within the organization,” Hallett went on to say.
Then on Tuesday, TradeRev announced it hired two regional directors to drive the expansion of the company’s United States operations. TradeRev president and co-founder Mark Endras tapped Tim O’Rourke as the Southeast regional director and Michael Niebling as the Midwest regional director.
As the new regional directors in the United States, TradeRev highlighted O’Rourke and Niebling will be responsible for building and strengthening relationships with dealers and hiring in their respective targeted locations, as well as focusing on expanding the company’s overall U.S. footprint. O’Rourke’s work will focus in the Southeast region, where the company has been establishing a presence since this summer. Niebling will focus on building a TradeRev presence in the Midwest states.
“Tim and Michael bring years of knowledge and experience in effectively managing and growing companies in the automotive industry, and we are confident they will successfully lead our growth in these strategically selected markets,” Endras said.
“We’ve been focused on building and growing our footprint in the Southeastern United States for the past several months, and bringing Tim on as regional director to take over this ongoing expansion was the next logical step,” Endras continued.
“We also identified Chicago as a key place to share our game-changing technology next, as it is dense with car dealerships and partners, and centrally located among several different Midwest automotive hubs,” Endras went on to say.
Prior to TradeRev, O’Rourke was most recently the vice president of automotive at Netsertive, a Google premier partner, where he oversaw the development of an entire sales organization focusing on the automotive market. This included developing KPIs, establishing the ramping strategy, staffing, hiring and training processes.
O’Rourke also was the regional sales manager for Autotrader, where he was directing a team of more than 100, and then became the general sales manager for Manheim’s largest market, which included Manheim’s flagship auction, where he was responsible for building the outside and inside sales teams. During his time at Manheim, he influenced the development of sales teams from South Carolina through New England. He has a bachelor’s degree from Jacksonville University.
Niebling was previously the regional sales manager for Dominion Enterprises, where he was responsible for building and strengthening profitable business relationships with potential customers and business partners for product promotion. He was also the vice president of CompuCredit and was the director of sales for HSBC Bank. Niebling has a bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University.
“As TradeRev continues to expand its footprint in the U.S., we needed two successful and experienced individuals on the ground, building and leading our teams in these two key regions,” said Peter Kelly, president of KAR Digital Services and chief technology officer of KAR Auction Services.
“The response from dealers in these markets to TradeRev’s unique and innovative technology has been overwhelmingly positive, and we look forward to sharing it even more widely with Tim and Michael leading the way,” Kelly went on to say.
European visit
Hallett also mentioned that about a month ago, he made a trip to Canvey Island, England to visit with the newest part of ADESA (UK) Limited — HBC Vehicle Services — which the company acquired back in June.
HBC Vehicle Services provides efficient salvage collection and disposal services for some of the U.K.’s top insurance, fleet and accident management companies. Hallett used the visit to meet with management and other employees.
“I can tell you that these commodity prices are having a stronger impact, more negative impact on our U.K. operations than here in North America,” Hallett said. “As you know, and I think previously mentioned or stated on the call about 90 percent of our vehicles with HBC are purchased vehicles so the impact is being felt heavier.
“But the good news is I was very pleased while I was there,” he continued. “The management team had prepared for my arrival and they had actually outlined the strategy of how they plan on shifting the business model both for the seller and the buyer in terms of the pricing and they've actually made a shift in that respect
“I think they've got us in a good position going forward, and I think we'll be pleased with the outcome as we head into 2016,” Hallett went on to say. “But there has been no question in terms of our timing on acquiring that business and scrap metal prices being what they were, we got off to a difficult start.”
The visit also confirmed Hallett’s belief in supporting the team HBC Vehicle Services has in place.
“I think one thing that we've learned from our international relationships is, people very much appreciate allowing the local culture to kind of manage the local culture and not have people from the U.S. and North America come over and tell them how their business model should work. And at this point in time, we have no plans on changing or disrupting that model,” he said.
Insurance Auto Auctions recently launched what the company dubbed the IAA Total Loss Solutions, a suite of products that executives highlighted can directly impact the opportunities to improve customer satisfaction and more effectively manage costs during the total loss claims process.
The first two product lines the company rolled out are IAA Inspection Services and IAA Title Services.
The company indicated IAA Inspection Services was developed to reduce the cycle time from date-of-loss to total loss determination. Three components are included:
— Enhanced images
— Condition report
— Appraisal
The company explained these offerings are designed to allow direct towing to the salvage auction, where high-resolution imagery can support virtual inspection of vehicles, resulting in faster cycle time and reduced claims cost.
Efficiencies within the inspection process can be further leveraged by IAA providing a pre-loss vehicle condition and option report, and a vehicle valuation to provide a comprehensive solution to the total loss claims process.
Executives highlighted IAA Title Services includes three components, too, all designed to suit the specific needs of the customer. The segment rundown includes:
—Title Procurement
—Title Solutions
—Title Direct
Title Procurement is geared to be a seamless offering that can be used by carriers to manage the document procurement process on all total loss claims.
Title Solutions can be utilized on those complex claims with unresolved title and document issues.
Title Direct is a service that can allow documents from multiple sources, typically the insured and lienholder, to be sent directly to an IAA branch, reducing cycle time and cost for the carrier.
“Our customers are consistently focused on providing the best possible experience for their insureds while increasing the efficiency of their claims process,” Insurance Auto Auctions chief executive officer and president John Kett said.
“The total loss claims process has become a more important success factor for our property and casualty carrier clients, as well as a primary influencer of customer satisfaction and retention,” Kett continued.
IAA senior vice president of business development Pat Walsh added, “These are the first products IAA is bringing to market within our Total Loss Solutions strategy.
“We completed extensive research on the total loss claims process and our results clearly indicate that opportunity exists to help our clients improve customer satisfaction and gain economic benefits,” Walsh went on to say.
Despite a $5.2 million dip in revenue during the fourth quarter of its 2015 fiscal year, Copart still managed to post increases in both gross margin and net income to close out a year with its fully diluted earnings per share nearly 23 percent higher.
For the quarter that ended July 31, Copart reported this week that its revenue, gross margin and net income came in at $282.3 million, $118.8 million and $57.4 million, respectively. The figures represented a decrease in revenue of $5.2 million, or 1.8 percent; an increase in gross margin of $1.8 million, or 1.6 percent; and an increase in net income of $6.4 million, or 12.5 percent, respectively, from the same quarter last year.
Officials indicated fully diluted earnings per share for Q4 rose to $0.44 compared to $0.39 a year earlier, marking an increase of 12.8 percent.
For the entire fiscal year, Copart determined its revenue, gross margin and net income came in at $1.1 billion, $483.4 million and $219.8 million, respectively. These amounts represent a decrease in revenue of $17.4 million, or 1.5 percent; an increase in gross margin of $14.8 million, or 3.2 percent; and an increase in net income of $41.1 million, or 23.0 percent, respectively, from the same period last year.
Officials added their fully diluted earnings per share for the fiscal year climbed to $1.67, up from $1.36 for an increase of 22.8 percent.
Copart mentioned that included in the operating results for the fourth quarters of its past two fiscal years was the impact of the beneficial resolution of uncertain tax positions, which increased diluted earnings per share each period by $0.03.
Officials also noted that included in the operating results of the prior year was an impairment charge of $29.1 million recorded in Q3 resulting primarily from the abandonment of work previously capitalized in connection with the development of a third-party enterprise operating system.
Copart recognized as a 2015 Confirmit ACE Award Winner
In other company news, Copart has been awarded a 2015 Confirmit ACE (Achievement in Customer Excellence) Award, an accolade the company insisted demonstrates its long-term commitment to customer service.
Officials explained the Confirmit ACE Awards program celebrates outstanding achievement in Voice of the Customer and customer experience. Receiving a Confirmit ACE Award is a distinct honor that demonstrates the recipient’s rigorous application of customer experience processes, and its outstanding performance as measured by those processes. An elite group of Confirmit clients qualified for an ACE Award.
Copart earned the Confirmit ACE Award based on its use of survey programs to make informed decisions that improve the buyer experience. This is Copart’s second consecutive year to be recognized for this award.
“Receiving a Confirmit ACE Award showcases our commitment to delivering the best customer experience possible,” Copart senior director of marketing Michelle Hoffman said. “We’re excited to share this award with our entire company and loyal customer base. Customer feedback will continue to be important as we evolve the buyer experience.”
Confirmit president and chief executive officer Henning Hansen added, “Copart has proven to be a true leader in customer excellence. Its comprehensive program ensures that the voice of the customer is not just part of the business process, but built into the fabric of the company to improve business results and drive change.
“We are proud that Copart works with Confirmit for its customer experience initiatives,” Hansen went on to say.
Copart recently announced the winners of its second annual Copart Rebuild Challenge, whose participants were tasked with showing how they restored, customized or rebuilt a vehicle.
Automotive enthusiasts and rebuilders from across the country submitted their rebuild projects, aiming for the $2,000 grand prize. After narrowing down the submissions to the top 10, thousands of votes were cast by the public to determine the top-three finalists.
The winner of the contest was Thomas Lea-Anderson, of Michigan, who won the $2,000 prize for depicting his project for the rebuilding of a wrecked 2003 Volkswagen GTI. According to Copart, Lea-Anderson has been rebuilding cars since the age of 16 and currently works at Lea’s Auto Body, his family’s business.
“I’ve worked at my uncle’s body shop for 10 years, and I rebuild vehicles on the side,” Lea-Anderson said. “It’s a hobby and a habit for now, but I hope to start my own business soon.”
Lea-Anderson upgrade the GTI with several modifications, including a new turbocharger and racing coilover suspension. The project took him six weeks and he has kept the vehicle for personal use.
“Thomas Lea-Anderson’s entry in the Copart Rebuild Challenge was a great example of what can be done with a vehicle purchased from our auctions,” said Michelle Hoffman, Copart’s senior director of marketing. “The work he did to turn the damaged Volkswagen into a beautiful, finished vehicle with racecar-like features was really impressive.”
Lea-Anderson has purchased and rebuilt three vehicles from Copart in the last two months, aiming to start his own business out of it.
The second place winner was Daniel Basco, of Florida, who rebuilt a 2006 Volkswagen Passat. Third place went to Jack Parker, of California, who rebuilt a 2007 Chevrolet Corvette.
To view the winning projects, click here.
Along with discussing two elements impacting the revenue stream at Insurance Auto Auctions as well as more auction locations that might become part of the company, KAR Auction Services chief executive officer Jim Hallett said the company is seeing volume growth both in the physical lanes as well as its online-only channels.
What especially impressed investment analysts was how ADESA reported a 14-percent volume in the second quarter as Wall Street observers noticed the industry-wide improvement came in at about 9 percent.
“I’d say that we look at those numbers with a little bit of caution. We were at 14 percent and the industry did report 9 percent,” Hallett said when KAR hosted a conference call to discuss its Q2 performance.
“But we really don't put a lot of credence in those numbers until we get a year-end result and we get a full report,” he continued. “But with that said, our commercial business is very strong. And all segments are doing well. And that’s right in our kitchen.”
Also cooking nicely in KAR’s wholesale kitchen is dealer consignment. Hallett described it as a “phenomenal job” that the company as a whole generated a 7-percent lift in dealer consignment in Q2.
“Many of you go back in history with me to where in 2009 our dealer consignment business was at 25 percent of our total business,” Hallett said. “And we knew with the headwinds that we were going to face on the commercial side that we had to get a lot better with dealer consignment.
“This is probably one of the initiatives that I’m most proud of is the fact that we’ve been able to take that dealer consignment up to 50 percent of our business and not just take it up, but to hold it there,” he continued.
Not only is KAR seeing a steady flow of dealer consignment volume, the company is also witnessing its lanes filling with units from other segments of the wholesale market, too, trends that Hallett is expecting to see continuing for the foreseeable future.
“Our customers have told us that off-lease supplies in the second half of 2015 will be stronger than what they were in the first half of the year,” Hallett said. “And the number of cars selling online only is growing, but not as fast as the supply of off-lease vehicles. The good news is this is driving strong physical auction volumes.
“We knew that volume was going to increase, but I think the pleasant surprise was all segments were really improving,” he continued. “When you think about, we often just focus on the fleet, lease and repo, obviously this is heavily driven by the fleet lease and repo segments. But you know what, we’ve seen a large increase in factory cars. We’ve seen an increase in daily rental cars.”
Expanding footprint
KAR is still on the hunt for more locations even though another site near Pittsburgh is already in its portfolio and a green field is coming together in the Chicago market.
“We’re still very much a believer in brick-and-mortar auctions,” Hallett said. “We believe that not only does it give you a physical site that allows you to also grow your ancillary services and your revenues, but it also gives you another customer base that grows the customer base, and contributes to the online customer buying base as well.”
Hallett then reiterated that KAR remains interested in acquiring more independent auctions and bring them into the company umbrella.
“We did identify there’s probably five to 10 of them, as you mentioned, in the country. I didn't say we're going to get all five or 10 of them done anytime soon,” Hallett said. “But we are always in communication with the independents. We have good relationships with the independents, and I think you'll see us complete Chicago, and I think you can expect that we would be opportunistic as more of these opportunities become available.
“You would see us act on specific ones if they contribute to the geography and the customer mix and the strategy that we're looking to build on overall,” he went on to say.
KAR chief financial officer executive vice president Eric Loughmiller then interjected that the company would “be disciplined on how we value the businesses as well.
“That’s part of what drags these things out is we're very disciplined on how we value the physical auction businesses,” Loughmiller added.
Factors influencing IAA’s revenue
Insurance Auto Auctions generated an 11-percent revenue increase during the second quarter. Perhaps the jump might have been higher, but Hallett indicated that “commodity prices have continued to be depressed, impacting the lowest value vehicles sold there, and therefore affecting our buy fees.”
Loughmiller explained how the company examined the situation further to prepare for its Q2 report. He examined selling prices for salvaged vehicles in the second quarter and compared them to a year earlier.
“I found it interesting that we sold more than two times the number of cars in Q2 2015 than Q2 2014 at a value of $300 or less,” Loughmiller said. “This clearly demonstrates the impact commodity prices are having on the value of salvaged vehicles, especially the lowest value vehicles.”
Beyond commodity prices, another investment analyst wondered if IAA is seeing insurers put additional pressure on the company to keep costs low as vehicle accidents rise, perhaps impacting KAR’s ability to generate more profit by this division.
“Really the pressure comes from service-level agreements that are embedded in these insurance contracts,” Loughmiller said. “The pressure I would describe as we're expected to pick up the cars faster. It helps to reduce the cost of storage and things that the insurance company might be incurring prior to it getting to the salvage yard. Again, the model works very well for us and I'd say the pressure is really focused on the tow cost.”
Check the time and the status of salvage vehicles. That’s what Insurance Auto Auctions is offering as the company recently launched the IAA Buyer Watch App, an application customized for the Apple Watch.
Officials highlighted the app can enable buyers to view the status of their vehicles in the bidding process through notifications on their wrists.
Through what the company believes is the first app of its kind to be adapted for wearable technology, the IAA Buyer Watch App can give buyers a quick graphical view of the status of their vehicles during the watch and pre-bid portions of the bidding process without having to use their mobile phones.
"IAA is proud to be the first to market for smart wearable device technology in the salvage industry,” Insurance Auto Auctions chief executive officer and president John Kett said.
“We have built a culture that encourages the development of innovation at an accelerated pace to be responsive to our buyers’ needs,” Kett continued. “IAA’s speed of delivery continues to improve as a result of our teams embracing agility as a philosophy, allowing us to stay ahead of the digital transformation in the business.”
In addition to offering what the company contends is the best-in-class buyer experience for customers, Kett pointed out the IAA Buyer Watch App adds a critical element of time saving for buyers. The watch interface can shows buyers a summary of their watch/pre-bid vehicles and the total vehicles on their lists that are at auction on that particular day.
The IAA Buyer Watch App is free for download from the Apple Watch App Store.
A demonstration of the IAA Buyer Watch App can be seen in the above video.
In an effort to ramp up its business outside of North America, KAR Auction Services announced this week that its subsidiary ADESA (UK) Limited acquired HBC Vehicle Services.
Headquartered in Canvey Island, England, HBC specializes in salvage vehicle auctions and related services.
“This acquisition is the start of our expansion into new global markets, and we look forward to bringing our remarketing capabilities to the United Kingdom and beyond,” KAR chief executive officer and chairman Jim Hallett said.
“KAR is unique in that we are able to offer our customers an unmatched range of automotive remarketing services: from online and physical whole car and salvage auctions to floorplan financing and a wide range of used vehicle technology solutions such as Autoniq, TradeRev and DataScan,” Hallett continued.
HBC Vehicle Services provides efficient salvage collection and disposal services for some of the U.K.’s top insurance, fleet and accident management companies.
A leader in salvage auction technology, executives highlighted the company conducts business using a multitude of sales channels, including online auctions, and operates from 10 U.K. locations. With more than 50 years of experience, they pointed out HBC Vehicle Services has a significant buying audience throughout Europe.
“We are and will remain dedicated to our customers,” said Steve Hankins, managing director of HBC Vehicle Services.
“With KAR’s expertise and support, we are excited to accelerate our growth plans and continue to deliver competitive services to the salvage auction industry across the United Kingdom,” Hankins continued. “We look forward to finding new ways to deliver the best products and services to all of our customers.”
Hallett added, “We welcome the entire HBC team.
“HBC’s reputation for exceptional service makes them a natural fit with our organization, and we are very pleased to have them join the KAR group of companies,” Hallett went on to say.
ADESA (UK) Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of KAR and is focused on bringing new products and services to the U.K. automotive marketplace with special emphasis on upstream remarketing services that emphasize efficiency and technology to support franchise and independent retailers.
