Auto Bierschneider came out on top in this year's competition for the "Used Car Award 2019". The first-place winner is a multi-brand dealer headquartered in Mühlhausen in the Upper Palatinate; the company has a total of 18 dealerships at nine locations. Managing Director Bernhard Öttl and his team attach great importance to clear processes and leave nothing to chance. In the used car business, the dealer's focus is on purchasing: purchases from buy-back transactions are planned up to one and a half years in advance, and there is also a separate purchasing and auction platform as well as clearly structured lead management. Öttl and the owner couple Doris and Michael Fleischmann are already planning further steps: A large used car center with its own Bierschneider Academy is being built in Mühlhausen to familiarize all employees with the precision and speed of the company as quickly as possible.
"It is impressive how perfectly Auto Bierschneider's far-reaching strategic goals and attention to detail intertwine and lead to a strong market presence," commented Silvia Lulei, editor-in-chief of "Gebrauchtwagen Praxis", on the decision.
The laudatory speech for this year's first-place winner was given by VW Regional Manager Sascha Kapfelsperger: "Anyone who wants to get an idea of professional used car purchasing, management and professional used car marketing should pay a visit to Bierschneider."
Autohaus Hofmann, Gebrauchtwagenzentrum Ostbayern, in Regensburg, took second place. The dealership is part of the multi-brand HW Group, which includes eight other dealerships at four locations. In the used car center, Autohaus Hofmann presents 300 vehicles on two floors. Within the group, customers have access to a total of 750 used cars. The dealership organizes vehicle transport between the branches with its own logistics system. B2B goods are marketed via its own auction platform.
"A manufacturer that can call such a dealership its partner can count itself lucky," said Andreas Zweier, Head of Used Car Sales at BMW. "Professionalism, passion, commitment, fun and earning money at the same time" - that is what characterizes the Hofmann dealership.
Third place went to Auto Empire Trading in Butzbach. The independent dealership specializes in the international online sale of used cars. The three brothers Bülent, Kudret and Sükür Acikgöz pursue a clear strategy: they want to be the cheapest provider throughout Europe, attach great importance to transparency in buying and selling and combine extensive know-how for the international car trading business in the company. The stock includes 500 young used cars of various brands. "Honest drives the longest," commented Ansgar Klein, head of the German Association of Independent Car Dealers, on the corporate values practiced by the model company.
The winners of the "Used Car Award 2019":
- 1st place: Auto Bierschneider, Mühlhausen
- 2nd place: Autohaus Hofmann, Regensburg
- 3rd place: Auto Empire Trading, Butzbach
"Gebrauchtwagen Praxis" is the leading information service for the professional used car business. The spectrum of topics covered by the monthly trade journal ranges from sales and purchasing to legal and tax aspects through to preparation and service. www.gebrauchtwagenpraxis.de offers useful tools, a database with exclusive KBA data, as geodata with in-depth selection down to local authority level. The parent company Vogel Communications Group is one of the leading service providers for B2B communication in the German-speaking world. Its headquarters are in Würzburg. With four agencies in Berlin, the Group offers comprehensive communications expertise. The Group's services range from specialist media, corporate publishing, social media services, PR, trade fair services, networks and communities to market intelligence & insights and an in-house congress center.
