LeasePlan is to start remarketing its ex-lease cars directly to consumers through a new ‘clicks and bricks’ offering that mixes online services and physical experience centres.

A UK launch date is yet to be confirmed, but there are plans to have a number of experience centres across Europe before the year ends, reports AM sister title Fleet News. 

Details of the new approach to remarket some of its ex-fleet vehicles were revealed as part of LeasePlan’s new ‘What’s Next’ brand campaign, which focuses on the tagline ‘any car, anytime, anywhere’.

Fleet News understands customers will be able to buy used cars outright, lease or rent them through the new business.

However, the leasing giant declined to comment on UK specifics for the new business, including questions on what percentage of LeasePlan’s UK risk fleet will be disposed of through this new route or how many experience centres will be in the UK.

In the newly published Fleet News’ FN50 countdown of the top 50 contract hire companies LeasePlan has a total risk fleet of 168,155 vehicles, including 111,161 cars.

Fleet News understands LeasePlan is putting the onus on customers being able to browse online and will mix this with the ability to visit small ‘experience centres’ where customers can physically view stock.

The What’s Next brand campaign launched simultaneously across LeasePlan’s 32 global territories and coincided with an email campaign targeting 250,000 individuals with products and services.

The What’s Next campaign has been supported by a three-minute video starring ex-Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond and LeasePlan is also introducing new services to small-to-medium enterprise (SME) customers in the UK such as Click & Drive.

Click & Drive offers SMEs the opportunity to lease a new vehicle and trade in their old one if they own outright. LeasePlan will manage the part-exchange process as part of the deal and cars can be taken with repairs, maintenance, administrative support and reporting included.

Tex Gunning, LeasePlan chief executive, said: “We are living through a mega change in which people are moving from owning their cars to using cars-as-a-service. In this fast-changing world, LeasePlan aims to be the company that knows and stands for what’s next.

“Ultimately, our ambitious goal is to provide a fully flexible ‘any car, anytime, anywhere’ service. For us, this is the future of mobility.”