Are you getting a good deal? Does the price you will pay exceed the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, the famous MSRP?
This may surprise you, but know that the Corporation des concessionaires automobiles du Québec (CCAQ) says it is aware of your concerns.
Even more surprising: the group of 890 dealers realizes that consumer confidence is sorely lacking.
“We commissioned a study (with the firm Léger Marketing) among 1,000 Quebecers last June to find out what the public and consumers think of us and we made observations that we suspected well at the start, know that the level of confidence is quite limited,” confirms the CEO of the Corporation, Ian P. Sam Yue Chi.
Yes, but still?
“We have identified the element that most affects confidence, and it is price transparency,” he explains. Quebecers have always had the impression of being tricked when they enter a dealership to negotiate the price of the vehicle. It’s a complex problem.”
This can be seen as a form of my fault. A desire to adopt better business practices to ensure that consumers feel “comfortable” when they set foot in a showroom.
Feeling “comfortable”, we will have understood that it must go well beyond the latte and biscuits that we offer you free of charge when you enter the salesman’s office.
Ian P. Sam You Chi agrees. “We want the customer to be able to take a step back before purchasing their vehicle,” he explains. Also, the dealer will offer him a written quote, with a price, and he will have 48 hours to make his final decision.
This is the complete opposite of a transaction made under pressure, with the false feeling that the offer on the table will no longer hold once it exits the trade.
It is not without reason that car salesmen find themselves, year after year, in the bottom of the ranking, in the list of the Léger firm which lists trades and professions in Quebec.
“We are 50th out of 50, we are at the bottom,” concedes the big boss of the Corporation.
Such a score leaves no one indifferent in this industry which generates a turnover of 20 billion dollars annually, with 45,000 direct jobs and 100,000 indirect jobs.
Dealers have their share of responsibilities, although they should not all be put in the same room. As in all sectors of activity, there are competent people, who are in good faith, and there are those who would benefit from changing jobs or professions.
Because you have to know that this business does not rely solely on the credibility of sellers and dealership owners. Should we remember that franchisees are subject to strong pressure from the manufacturers themselves, who expect ever higher results and profits?
To stimulate sales, these same manufacturers encourage their business partners to invest millions of dollars in the construction of imposing dealerships and look refined. We sell sheet metal and luxury in showrooms that shine like a new penny.
One thing is certain, competition is fierce in this industry. On the one hand, dealers seek to increase their profit margins and make their state-of-the-art mechanical workshops profitable. On the other hand, major manufacturers are refining their marketing strategies to increase their market shares without reducing the retail price of vehicles, whether they are 100% electric or run on unleaded gasoline.
You have to pay an average price of $52,900 for a brand new car and $36,342 for a used car, hoping not to run into a lemon and have to go to the dealership to get repairs.
Certified dealers
Regardless, with the sale price of vehicles skyrocketing, consumers have the right to expect hassle-free ride, just as they have the right to complain to the Protection Agency of the consumer (OPC) when things go wrong.
If we are to believe the CEO’s words, there is a real desire on the part of the dealers to do things correctly, always with the aim of regaining this lost trust. Some will say that this reasoning should have been made many years ago.
In mid-September, during the 2024 Summit Meeting, consumers’ expectations in terms of fairness and clarity in commercial practices were discussed. The dealers are committed to obtaining their certification in terms of transparency, ethics and quality of service.
There was also talk of a new collaboration with… the OPC. Will this result in an acceleration of the processing of complaints made by buyers who feel wronged?
All this in a political context where the CAQ government and its Minister of Justice, Simon Jolin-Barrette, are leading consultations surrounding Bill 72 aimed at “protecting consumers”, among other things on the issue of tipping.
This bill includes elements that concern the automobile industry. Among these: the “informed consent of the client” when signing a contract.
Another example: dealers will no longer be able to “force customers to finance the purchase of the vehicle via credit or leasing specific”. In doing so, the buyer will have the “freedom to choose their financing method”.
Ended, too, the verbal agreements. From now on, everything will have to be written and well explained.
Small and big players
Meanwhile, dealer groups are completing acquisitions to cover a wider territory. This week, HGregoire confirmed the transaction announced at the beginning of the year with the Le Prix du Gros group.
Are other major transactions expected in the near future? Are the smallest players threatened by this consolidation movement?
“Our reality has nothing to do with what we see in the United States,” puts the CEO of the Corporation into perspective. There, groups own up to 100 concessions!”
In Quebec, there are a multitude of medium-sized groups that own 4 to 10 concessions. This is without counting groups of 20 concessions or more.
In the 2023 ranking published by AutoPro, we learned that the Gabriel Group sits at the top of the 10 largest groups, with 30 vehicle dealerships.
Prix du Gros was in 10th place alongside the ALBI and Dilawri groups, with 11 concessions. The portrait has just changed with the arrival of HGrégoire.
We will have to see how the two new commercial partners will go about “redefining the customer experience” and making it “even more remarkable”. This was written in full in the press release published earlier this week to formalize the transaction.
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