Source: Budapest Business Journal
The AutoWallis Group has entered the Czech vehicle retail market after successfully closing the purchase of Stratos Auto’s three BMW dealerships, according to a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal.
With this purchase, the AutoWallis Group gains a presence on the Czech retail market in the cities of Prague, Hradec Kralove, and Pardubice in addition to the Hungarian and Slovenian markets while its Distribution Business Unit distributes a number of vehicle brands in 16 countries in the region.
As the first step in the transaction, the Prime Market Budapest Stock Exchange company purchased 80% of the owner of the three BMW dealerships, which share will be increased to 100% within two years by acquiring the remaining shares. With this acquisition, AutoWallis acquired 10% of BMW sales in the Czech Republic in a single step, which accounted for close to 4% of the country’s total premium car sales last year.
These 3 BMW dealerships sold 650 new and used passenger cars in 2022 and 737 in 2023. Regarding the Czech car market, Péter Antal, head of the AutoWallis Group Retail & Services Business Unit, explained that a total of 244 thousand new passenger vehicles were placed on the market in the Czech Republic in 2023, which is almost double the Hungarian market.
While the Hungarian passenger car market shrank by 3.4% last year, sales saw an increase in 15% in the Czech Republic during the same period. This is a good illustration of how the continued geographical diversification of the AutoWallis Group portfolio supports the company’s stable growth and continues to strengthen the Group’s major role on the Central and Eastern European car sales and mobility service market, the company says.
THE AUTHOR: BENCE GAÁL
