Accelerating the recovery of the aftermarket brought to you by Automechanika.’

Date: Tuesday 13 October 2020

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Sponsored by ecommotors, the webinar gave stage to a panel of highly experienced industry professionals, including Dr Julia Saini, Associate Partner at Frost and Sullivan, Andrew Rowson, co-founder and Head of Services at ecommotors, and Peter Lawton, Senior Section Manager at SMMT.

Hundreds of automotive professionals registered and joined the free-to-attend session, which was moderated by Mark Field, Director at Impression Communications and PR manager for Automechanika Birmingham, who engaged the audience with polls and took questions to shape the discussion.

For those who were unable to attend the webinar, the live session has been recorded and is available here on-demand.

Saini kickstarted the proceedings by sharing key trends and forces that have shaped the automotive business ecosystem over the past few months.

With mobility requirements changing worldwide, the aftermarket has not been immune to the changes brought about by the pandemic. However, non-driving behaviour has affected the industry the most, with there being a prominent change in the way business is carried out.

Saini noted there has been a surge in digitalisation in the sale of parts, services offered to customers, retail opportunities and collaboration between the supply chain.

Covid-19 has forced companies to push business models that wasn’t the main focus beforehand. This was supported by a poll taken throughout the course of the webinar, showing that 70% of respondents had invested in new digital technology over the past few months.

New demands include considering customer safety and wellbeing, contactless delivery in ecommerce parts and delivery, an online marketplace for booking parts, embracing the hygiene car care market such as cabin filters and vehicle sanitisation products, and on demand service models for mobile mechanics and parts including tyres, batteries and fuel.

This all leaves the aftermarket with a huge opportunity to invest, especially as digital adoption is set to grow globally at 1.5 times the pace in 2020 as compared to other years.

There has also been increased activity on digital platforms, with a huge uptake in online touch points in a customer’s journey for replacement parts and automotive on-demand services such as mobile mechanics.

Enthusiastic about the future, Saini said: “All of these changes will lead to a dramatic increase in opportunities. Disruptions will shape the aftermarket going forward and future vehicles will not be repaired but managed as digitalisation produces data that allows companies to plan ahead and prepare accordingly.”

In an industry panel, Saini, Rowson and Lawton then discussed the practical steps needed to realise the benefits of digitalisation, urging the aftermarket to recognise that demands and relationships have changed as people want convenience and accessibility more than ever before.

A second poll asked whether the industry needs to upskill to embrace digitalisation, with 91% of respondents believing it does.

Rowson spoke about embracing the inevitable and that companies need to have the appropriate logistics in place to service customer demand efficiently, while Lawton encouraged the sector to upskill and train at any given opportunity, as well as tapping into resources to capitalise on the available talent pool.

A final poll asked viewers whether they would increase spend on digital products and services, with 95% answering yes.

Viewers were then given the opportunity to partake in a Q&A session, with the panel providing a balanced dialogue, discussing how to protect against a second or third wave of coronavirus, managing prices in a competitive market, and any changes to the route to market.

The next session will be scheduled for December 2020 and for those who are keen to learn more about Digital products, contact digital@uk.messefrankfurt.com 

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