Auto Town Obtains Investment From Multinational Partner
16 August 2000
Auto Town Obtains Investment From Multinational Partner
HAYWARD, Calif. - Auto Town, an innovative provider of auto dealership management software, Wednesday opened a new phase of international expansion by announcing that Jardine International Motor Holdings has purchased $6.5 million of preferred stock in Auto Town, plus an option to acquire additional stock before year-end.Jardine operates an international dealership and distribution network located in Asia, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe and the United States. Jardine and its associates sold 161,000 vehicles in 1999.
For Auto Town the partnership will have several benefits. Auto Town currently has products installed in more than 100 dealerships in 11 states across the United States. It has outlined a joint venture with Jardine to expand its customer base into Europe and Asia. Auto Town recently installed its DealerTrak software at Mercedes-Benz of Beverly Hills, a Jardine dealership. Trial installations are already scheduled for Jardine dealerships in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.
To adapt its products for international markets the software company will be investing in additional personnel as well as in R&D. Auto Town recently moved into expanded offices as a result of more than doubling its staff to nearly 100 employees over the last six months.
"We are pleased to be working in cooperation with a company of international stature such as Jardine," said Al Babbington, Auto Town's CEO. "This partnership will open many doors for us and, in fact, additional joint ventures are already under discussion."
For Jardine, the association with Auto Town represents a strategic investment as well as an opportunity to benefit from Auto Town's cutting-edge technology. As a leading automotive dealership consolidator Jardine utilizes technology to enhance productivity and to benefit from economies of scale. "All of our operational executives who reviewed Auto Town's DealerTrak software were impressed," said Rob Toms, a director at Jardine International Motors. "We could find no other product that offered a fully integrated front-end solution and such clear benefits to customer and dealer. I believe that Auto Town has significant growth potential both in the U.S. and in Europe and Asia."
About Auto Town
Auto Town, located in Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area, was founded in 1996 as a software and Internet provider to auto dealerships. Auto Town's core product "DealerTrak" was released in the fourth quarter of 1998. DealerTrak is a fully integrated front-end solution customized to meet the needs of retail automotive dealers. DealerTrak's software suite utilizes a user-friendly interface with a powerful relational database to streamline and manage customer and transaction data throughout the dealership. DealerTrak addresses three distinct areas corresponding directly to the dealer's business process, providing optimal workflow:
| -- | Customer Relationship Management (CRM) |
| -- | Finance & Insurance Management (F&I) |
| -- | Inventory Management (IM) |
DealerTrak's comprehensive management software integrates with DMS systems and more than 90 other strategic partners. These integrations include ADP, Reynolds & Reynolds, Kelley Blue Book, Black Book, NADA, Autobytel, etc. DealerTrak captures customer data from the first point of contact, including by Internet, telephone, or walk-in. Through push and pull integration the software suite automatically updates inventory and eliminates redundant data entry for sales, F&I and accounting. DealerTrak also includes a comprehensive CRM product that generates customer follow-up letters and provides management with daily work plans. DealerTrak also provides management with comprehensive productivity reports by sales person, or advertising source.
Dealerships using DealerTrak have noted substantial time savings, 30 to 45 minutes per transaction, as data is entered once for the entire dealership. Sales increases as high as 50% have also been reported within six months of installation.
About Jardine Matheson
Jardine Matheson is a multinational group of leading businesses focused primarily on the Asia-Pacific Region. Its operations employ some 150,000 people and its activities are leaders in the fields of financial services, supermarkets, consumer marketing, engineering and construction, motor trading, property and hotels.
Jardine International Motor Holdings Limited is one of eight core businesses in the Jardine Matheson Group. It has an international dealership and distribution network with businesses located in Asia, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe and the United States. Its principal focus is on the sales and service of premium quality motor vehicles, with a particular emphasis on Mercedes-Benz. In 1999, the Group's businesses achieved consolidated revenue in excess of US$2.8 billion and, including associates and joint ventures, employed more than 11,500 people.