Cazoo buys Vans365 to offer commercial vehicles

Online car retailer Cazoo says it will expand its offering to include commercial vehicles after buying Vans365 for £6.5 million.

Vans365 is an independent online commercial vehicle retailer in the UK with a team of in-house technicians and customer service specialists based in Bristol.

It had revenues of around £14m in 2021m with an EBITDA margin of about 9%. The transaction is subject to FCA approval, anticipated in the coming weeks.

The deal will combine Cazoo’s platform and brand with Vans365’s expertise and relationships in the commercial vehicle market and accelerate its planned launch into buying and selling commercial vehicles online later this year.

Alex Chesterman, founder and CEO of Cazoo, said: “The market for commercial vehicles is worth £16 billion annually, with over one million vans sold each year in the UK, which expands our addressable market and is a natural product extension for us.

“The acquisition of Vans365 will accelerate our planned launch of buying and selling commercial vehicles online later this year and will enhance both our customer proposition and team and I look forward to welcoming the Vans365 team to Cazoo.”

Cazoo has sold more than 40,000 cars online since its launch less than two years ago. It owns and fully reconditions all of its cars before offering them on its website for either delivery or collection.

Its launch into commercial vehicles later this year will further expand the proposition and selection available on its website.

Jordan Franklin, managing director of Vans365 said: “Like Cazoo, customer obsession is at the heart of Vans365’s success and we’re delighted to be joining the Cazoo team to take our online proposition to the next level.

“We have built strong supply relationships and achieved excellent customer feedback with a great team who have strong sector expertise and are looking forward to joining forces with Cazoo.”