Gavin Hydes knows all about surviving a crisis. The Scotsman married a woman from Cork and decided to move to Ireland a few years before the crash. During this time, he took the reins of a BMW car dealership which is now one of Ireland’s most successful motor groups.

The history of the Joe Duffy dealerships dates back to 1972, when Joe Duffy acquired the first-ever BMW dealership in Ireland. Founded by Duffy and Bill Thompson, Joe Duffy Motors opened its doors with just four staff. That same year, 180 BMW’s were sold in the 26 counties of Ireland, 90 of which were sold by Duffy.

Now with Hydes as the chief executive of the group, it employs over 440 employees, the number of dealerships across Ireland has grown to 20 and they represent 17 brands including Mini, BMW Motorrad, BMWi, Audi, Mazda, Volkswagen, Ford, Land Rover, Jaguar, Volvo, Porsche and Kia. The group also received €35 million as part of an investment programme in 2018.

The last recession crippled all types and sizes of businesses. Yet the Joe Duffy Group went from strength to strength.

Now, business and industry are staring into the mouth of a new crisis with Covid-19. People are stuck in their houses unable to sell, buy or trade. It is unclear what the overall impact of the pandemic will be, but Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has already declared a “severe recession” and one million people receive some form of government income support.

Hydes announced on March 28 that all Joe Duffy dealerships would close until the government announces further directives. Behind the showrooms’ closed doors, however, a new initiative by the company looks set to pay off.

“It was part of an overall 2020 solution to communicate with customers 24/7.”

Gavin Hydes

Hydes recently launched the Joe Duffy Online Car Dealership, which will continue to bring in customers even when they can’t leave their homes to visit the group’s premises due to Covid-19 restrictions.

“This plan we have suits this situation,” says Hydes about the online dealership, which was in action before Covid-19 started disrupting business. “It was part of an overall 2020 solution to communicate with customers 24/7.”

Customers can book a car service through the online dealership where the group’s service department will pick-up and drop off the car, freshly cleaned and serviced. The online solution also gives customers a way to self-appraise their car. The group will then offer cash or part exchange for the car depending on the condition.

Through the online service, customers can look at cars they may want to buy as well. They will be sent a personalised video of the vehicle they are interested in.

The Joe Duffy Group developed this online sales solution with Cork-based used car retailer ZuCar.

“Because we’re moving to a more digital world, a lot of our customers are online. It’s an easier channel to transact with customers,” says Hydes.

Hydes states that recent years should have been a period of growth for car dealerships. The weakness of sterling, Brexit, the decline of imports and now Covid-19 are all impacting the industry, according to him.

However, many motor groups offer services beyond just selling cars to bring in revenue.

“A lot of dealerships are not a one-trick pony,” says Hydes, adding that most give cars a service, sell parts and sell used cars.

That said, the motor industry has come under serious pressure.

Uncertain future

Sales have fallen by at least 60 per cent for used cars and 70 per cent for new models, Hydes said recently. And the factories across Europe that build new cars are being affected too.

Supply is becoming an issue as more and more car makers are ceasing operations due to Covid-19.

Jaguar Land Rover and Bentley Motors were among the last car makers to suspend production at their UK factories. Meanwhile, in Sweden, Volvo closed its factory on March 26. It was last remaining high-volume plant in Europe.

“European factories are stopping the production of cars, which will impact our business,” says Hydes. Dealerships everywhere are looking to sell what they can – while they can.

The Joe Duffy Group’s revenues were healthy before the global health crisis. Last year, they rose by 8.5 per cent to €321 million.

Even on the back of these good figures, there may be tough times ahead for car dealerships. Some reported sales drops of up to 90 per cent last month.

Director of car haulier Eirtrans Michael Cribbin is not optimistic about Ireland’s motor industry either. He says the supply of cars into Ireland has “dropped off the face of the earth.”

“There’s definitely nothing happening in the next three months,” says Cribbin. He believes it will be three months at least before more cars come into Ireland, but he says that business realistically won’t pick up again this year.