April 2021

NEWS 6 AFTERMARKET APRIL 2021 www.aftermarketonline.net Motul joins OESAA Motul has become the first lubricants company to be inducted into the Original Equipment Suppliers Aftermarket Association (OESAA), as it moves to position itself as a go-to brand for the UK aftermarket As well as being the best- selling motorcycle lubricant brand in the UK, Motul recently announced two new OE partnerships with sportscar manufacturers RUF and Glickenhaus, to add to its existing OE portfolio, which includes Brabus. According to Motul UK and Ireland Country Business manager, Callum Goodland, joining OESAA is a sign of Motul’s intent to become a challenger brand in the aftermarket: “We aim to be a proactive member, so we would like to be involved with OESAA’s training projects and the other industry events in which it participates. OESAA provides us with a platform to demonstrate what a quality- driven, leading lubricant brand can offer the UK automotive aftermarket.” Welcoming Motul to the organisation, OESAA Chairman Nigel Morgan observed: “It’s a brand that I know shares our passion for quality that is looking to forge a presence in the UK aftermarket in the way it has done in many European countries.” The automotive sector reacted to the potential impact of the March 2021 budget with a range of views. IAAF Chief Executive Wendy Williamson observed: “The extension to the furlough scheme and increased access to grants and support is welcome. It gives aftermarket businesses more breathing room following a very difficult period. While more details will be announced, the new 130% first-year capital allowance for qualifying plant and machinery assets will continue to assist our members who have continued to invest. Businesses face countless challenges currently across numerous fronts and so it’s important they are provided with the support they need to grow and develop.” Andy Hamilton, CEO of LKQ Euro Car Parts, said: “2021’s Budget has given the independent aftermarket some reasons to be cheerful after a long and tough year. The extension of furlough until September was a welcome surprise. It will give garages time to get back on their feet after restrictions hopefully come to an end in June, avoiding a possible cliff edge event. Importantly, it will allow the garages that will lose volumes of usual MOT work through April to July to cushion the gap and prepare for the new demand curve that we’ve seen through the later months of the year. The new small business corporation tax rate, business investment tax relief and funding for digital training all also have the potential to be really promising for the industry’s SMEs.” On the measures around training he observed: “Support for apprenticeships and traineeships is also hugely positive and cannot come soon enough. The lasting scars from the pandemic are likely to come in skill shortages as the usual cohort of fresh talent joining the sector every year more or less dried up because of the pandemic, with colleges also struggling to deliver courses. With the aftermarket leaning into some transformational changes over the next few years – from increasing digitisation to the rapid growth of the hybrid and EV parc – it will need all the support it can get to make up lost ground.” Andy concluded: “It’s rarely the case that garages need an incentive to take on apprenticeships. The aftermarket is one area of the economy where the practice has been embedded into everyday business for decades. But they do need funding when workloads remain suppressed from their pre-pandemic levels.” Philip Nothard, Chair, Vehicle Remarketing Association, said: "The downsides for business were few, such as the increase in corporation tax, and the super deduction is an interesting idea that could genuinely power a degree of growth. We also welcome the new measures to encourage apprenticeships, which could be of interest to companies right across the remarketing sector. At some point in the future, we’d like to see more detail about the government’s plans in all kinds of areas directly affecting the motor industry, from road tolls to on-street EV charging, but for the moment, this seems to be a Budget that ticks most boxes.” For an in-depth look at the Budget reaction across the sector, turn to pages 8-11. “Reasons to be cheerful?” Sector reacts to Budget 2021