UK online car retailer Cazoo has acquired Imperial Car Supermarkets, one of the largest independent used car retailers in the UK.
Imperial Car Supermarkets was established in 2006 and has grown to 18 retail sites across the UK including Bristol, Birmingham, Cardiff, Exeter, Ipswich, London, Portsmouth and Southampton, offering over 2,500 nearly new and used cars for sale.
The deal is hoped to combined Cazoo’s digital capabilities and platform with Imperial’s extensive infrastructure and expertise, and will provide Cazoo with a national network of storage, distribution, after sales and collection hubs.
In the past month, Cazoo has raised a further £25m of funding and achieved unicorn status.
It owns and fully reconditions its cars before offering them for sale and delivering them.
Alex Chesterman OBE, Founder & CEO of Cazoo said: “The acquisition of Imperial Car Supermarkets will enable Cazoo to better serve its customers and fulfill our increasing number of deliveries throughout the UK.
“This deal provides us with key infrastructure as well as a wealth of automotive expertise which will help accelerate our growth. Imperial has a highly dedicated team and I am delighted to welcome them to Cazoo along with Mike, Jon and Scott, who will take up key management positions with us.”
Neil Smith, Operations Director of Imperial Cars added, “Jon, Scott and Mike are rightly proud of what they’ve achieved over the past 15 years with Imperial Car Supermarkets. They’ve built a great team and excellent infrastructure network and it’s now time for another exciting chapter in our journey.
“Alex and his team at Cazoo have a very clear vision and we’re looking forward to Imperial being part of that story and creating the best possible digital car buying experience for consumers across the country.”