BCA wins Remarketing Award: “Helping remarketers improve their performance”
No better way to start a gala dinner than to be presented with a prize. It happened to Bertrand De Techtermann last month in Barcelona, when he received the International Car Remarketing Award at the Fleet Europe Summit. Let’s give the winner his just de(s)serts, and hear him out about BCA 1Europe Transport, the service which won him the Award.
Mr De Techtermann, a Swiss native, has worked in Transport and Logistics for more than 17 years, building experience across various companies in Switzerland, France, Germany, Slovakia and the UK.
From 2014, he set up Gefco Group’s Algerian subsidiary – his last role before joining BCA in 2016. BCA – originally British Car Auctions, of course – has grown into Europe’s leading used-car marketplace, with a mission to create a truly pan-European remarketing platform.
As European Operations Director for BCA, Mr De Techtermann’s goals include process alignment, online quality standardisation and securing excellence in service delivery. All of which touches upon BCA 1Europe Transport, the product that won the second annual International Car Remarketing Award, which was presented at the end of the fifth annual Fleet Europe Remarketing Forum.
Congratulations on your win! For those who weren’t there, can you give us a thumbnail definition of BCA 1Europe Transport?
“We created BCA 1 Europe Transport to provide the European remarketing industry with a quick and reliable solution for cross-border transport. After just 12 months, it’s already delivering thousands of used vehicles each month to more than 25 European countries, with an average lead time of less than 6 days. We’ve moved 20,000 vehicles in the first six months of this fiscal year, and the monthly figures keep growing”.
What makes it unique?
“Finished-vehicles transport across Europe, built around the needs of OEMs, focuses on full trucks between a limited number of points. However, used cars are a perishable good, which means they require tailor-made transport solutions – including single-car transport – with the speed, reliability and price that only full-truck transport usually offers. That solution did not exist. Since the European remarketing industry badly needed it, we built it.”
Why do you think it won the Award?
“The jury was after a proven solution with an international scope that was dramatically improving the profit for its users. BCA 1Europe ticks all those boxes, and how. It’s already saving our customers an average of 15 stock days – that’s massive, if you consider that for used-car dealers, each stock day is worth 1.3% in terms of return on capital. And we’re still fine-tuning our processes.”
What did you think of the other finalists for the Award?
“The jury did a great job in spotting innovation in a market where it can take many different forms. I was impressed by their overall quality, both in creativity and execution. And that only contributed to the pride we all felt when we were announced as winners.”
Did you imagine that you had a shot at winning?
“We certainly hoped so, as we tend to choose those battles that we think we can win. But we were also aware that we’re both a service supplier and a competitor to some of the great companies in the industry. We were impressed by the jury’s professionalism, independence and sense of fair play.”
What does winning the Award mean for the product, and for the company?
“For the product, winning in such a competitive environment confirms that great market experts see its value. It was designed for small-size used-car buyers, but it’s also being chosen by large players. That gives us an indication of how far it can grow. That, in turn, means a lot to all the teams that have put tremendous passion in making BCA 1Europe Transport happen. This Award is for them!”
Final question: How important is innovation in remarketing?
“Remarketing constantly has to reimagine itself. Innovation is doing that by providing ever faster and increasingly seamless solutions across the entire customer digital journey. Data and more generally technology allow to easily make customer promises towards an ‘Amazon experience.’ But it is by really concentrating on the downstream that we really provide the customers what they expect from an online marketplace.”
“Therefore, when we discuss innovation in vehicle remarketing, Transport as a Service does not come first to mind. But BCA saw that innovation, well executed, could accelerate stock rotation. This improves cash flow, which has a direct impact on earnings. Remarketers know that in their business, speed is of the essence. Any innovation that reduces the time between defleeting and cash-in – such as BCA 1Europe Transport – helps the industry improve its performance.”
