Manufacturer profile: Volkswagen UK and the shift in dealer revenue streams

To say that Volkswagen’s ID electric vehicle (EV) range is important to the fortunes of its franchised retailers is something of an understatement.

The success of the ID.3 hatchback, and ID.4 crossover set to arrive at the end of this year, will be a central part of the German brand’s efforts to retain network profitability following a return-on-sales rise from 0.67% in 2016 to 1.14% in 2018, before a dip to 1.08% in last year’s challenging market.

Following VW’s decision to cut 1% off the margin earned by its retailers at the turn of this year and the impact of COVID-19 coronavirus that will be no mean feat.