Inchcape plc

Inchcape plc

Type	Public limited company
Traded as	LSE: INCH
Industry	Automotive
Founded	1847
Headquarters	London, United Kingdom
Key people	Ken Hanna (Chairman) André Lacroix (CEO)
Revenue	£5,885.4 million (2010)[1]
Operating income	£225.5 million (2010)[1]
Net income	£133.0 million (2010)[1]
Website	www.inchcape.com

Inchcape plc (LSE: INCH) is a multinational automotive retail and services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It has operations in 26 countries across Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe and South America.^[2]

Inchcape is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

History

1847 to 1874

In 1847, William Mackinnon and Robert Mackenzie formed the Mackinnon Mackenzie Company (MMC), a general merchanting partnership based in Calcutta.^[3] In 1856 Mackinnon formed the Calcutta and Burma Steam Navigation Company to carry post to the region:^[3] the Company appointed MMC as their agents, secured contracts to transport British troops from Ceylon to India during the Indian Mutiny of 1857^[3] and in 1862 floated on the London Stock Exchange under the name British India Steam Navigation Company.^[3]

Inchcape and Company

In 1874, James Lyle MacKay joined Mackinnon and Mackenzie in Calcutta^[3] and by 1914 was the sole surviving senior partner in MMC. Largely responsible for solving India’s currency problems and for the adoption of the Gold Standard, he was given a peerage by King George V for his services to industry in 1911.^[3] He chose the title “Baron Inchcape of Strathnaver” to commemorate the Inchcape Rock, which lies off Arbroath, and Strathnaver in Scotland.^[3] He later became a Viscount and finally, in 1929, he was appointed the first Earl of Inchcape.

1950 to 2000

By the 1950s, the Inchcape family had diverse interests around the world. This period bought new legislation and tax laws and, under the third Lord Inchcape, the family’s many interests, including MMC, were consolidated into Inchcape and Company.^[3] In 1958 Inchcape and Company became a public company and offered twenty five per cent of its equity for sale on the London Stock Exchange.^[3]

Inchcape’s growth was largely due to a series of mergers and acquisitions, including the merger with Borneo Company in 1967, which almost doubled Inchcape’s size by adding Hong Kong, Malaysia, Canada, Singapore, Brunei and Thailand to the operation.^[3] In 1972, Dodwell & Company was acquired, adding extensive shipping, motors and business machine trading in the Far East.^[3]

Mann Egerton and Company, founded in the nineteenth century, with a portfolio that initially included de Dion, Renault Daimler, and later, British Leyland cars and a range of luxury vehicles, was acquired in 1973.^[4]

During the 1980s Inchcape acquired several petrol, textile, electronic and mineral testing and inspection companies and forms a specific testing business stream. This business stream kept on growing due to the acquisition of the Caleb Brett group, SEMKO and various others, such as ETL Testing Laboratories. In 1996 the tesing service division is part of a management buy-out by Charterhouse Development Capital and renamed Intertek Testing Services .^[5]

Pride and Clarke brought the Toyota distribution concession with them in 1982.^[6] During the 1990s the greater part of the business came from sale of Toyota cars and by 1998 Toyota had bought a fifty-one per cent stake in Inchcape’s UK distribution company Toyota (GB).^[7]

2000 to present

In June 2000 Sir John Egan was appointed chairman and Peter Johnson became Chief Executive Officer. The Competition Commission Report and subsequent order in 2000^[8] regarding new UK car prices resulted in a sharp drop in profitability. The economic recovery in the Far East helped restore profits as did the sale of Inchcape’s forty nine per cent stake in Toyota GB to Toyota in 2000.^[7]

In 2007 it acquired European Motor Holdings, a leading European motor retailer.^[9]

Operations

Headquartered in central London, Inchcape represents leading automotive brands and operates either a retail, or a vertically integrated retail model (i.e. exclusive distribution and retail), depending on the market. Inchcape's current key manufacturer partners are Toyota/Lexus, Scion, Chevrolet, Subaru, BMW, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Audi and Honda.

Inchcape currently has the following operations worldwide:

Australia
In Australia, Inchcape has been an importer and distributor for Subaru since 1973. It has the largest market share for a Subaru market outside Japan. Subaru Docklands, Inchcape’s flagship site is the largest Subaru dealership in the world. Inchcape also runs AutoNexus, a parts operation.^[10]

The Balkans
Inchcape has established a strong presence in the Balkans, distributing and retailing Toyota / Lexus in Romania, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia. Inchcape operates a vertically integrated retail business in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover and Mazda and retails BMW, Mitsubishi and Hyundai in those countries.^[11]

Belgium
Inchcape has been the Belgian importer and distributor for Toyota / Lexus since 1979.^[12]

China
In 2006, completed a Toyota showroom in Shaoxing. In 2008, it completed a Lexus showroom in Shaoxing: this will be followed by a third Lexus showroom in Shanghai later in 2008.^[11]

Greece
In Greece, Inchcape has been an importer and distributor for Toyota since 1987.^[12]

Guam
In the United States territory of Guam, Inchcape owns and operate Atkins-Kroll Motors, the islands' oldest automotive dealership, which they acquired in 1974. Atkins-Kroll, better known as AK to the locals in Guam, is the exclusive Chevrolet, Toyota, Scion and Lexus dealer in the area.^[13]

Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, Inchcape is an exclusive importer and retailer for Toyota / Lexus, Hino, Jaguar, Mazda and Daihatsu. When combined, these franchises regularly achieve around 40 per cent of market share. Crown Motors have held the Toyota franchise since 1966.^[14]

Russia
In 2006, Inchcape formed a joint venture with the Independence Group of Companies, one of Moscow’s leading independent car Retailers and went on to secure a majority stake in a business in St Petersburg. In 2007, Inchcape continued expansion in St Petersburg with acquiring majority stakes in businesses retailing Audi and Peugeot. In 2008, Inchcape bought a 75.1pc stake in Russia's Musa Motors Group.^[11]

Singapore
Inchcape is the exclusive importer and retailer for Toyota / Lexus and Suzuki in Singapore. It has held the Toyota franchise since 1967 and was awarded the Suzuki franchise in 1977.^[15]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Annual Report 2010
2. ^ "Corporate Profile". Inchcape plc. http://www.inchcape.com/resources/563/Corporate_Profile_8_4_11pdf.pdf. Retrieved 25 April 2011. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} Inchcape Shipping Services: History
4. ^ FT Actuaries Index 1973
5. ^ http://intertek.com/about/history/ Retrieved 2011-10-31
6. ^ Pride and Clarke
7. ^ ^{a b} Competition Commission
8. ^ Supply of New Cars Order 2000
9. ^ Office of Fair Trading
10. ^ Inchcape: Australia
11. ^ ^{a b c} Inchcape: Emerging markets
12. ^ ^{a b} Inchcape: Europe
13. ^ www.akguam.com/history
14. ^ Inchcape: Hong Kong
15. ^ Inchcape: Singapore

Further reading

• Jones, Stephanie. Two Centuries of Overseas Trading: The Origins and Growth of the Inchcape Group. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 1986. ISBN 0-333-37172-0

External links

• Official site
• Inchcape for Business
• Yahoo profile