Even though we are usually competitors in the market, we’ve all realized that we can only bring this important topic as one.
I invite other ITGs and distributors to join this Repdate initiative, as it's worth it. - Marcus Hähner Managing Director from globalone automotive
Our guest, Marcus, provides an insightful conversation about the world of ITGs, the operations, and mission of his company - globalone automotive, and their engagement with the Repdate project. As a key player in the EMEA and Americas regions, global One is committed to accommodating the needs of its shareholders and contractor suppliers. In this interview, Marcus discusses the unique challenges of modernization within the automotive industry, particularly within independent workshops.
He emphasizes the critical role of Repdate's telematic data feature in preparing these workshops for the future. Tune in to discover how Repdate is set to streamline logistics, optimize forecasts, and enhance predictive maintenance. Learn how global one and its competitors have joined forces to advance the Repdate initiative and the importance of bringing more ITGs on board.
Also, find out Marcus's predictions for the aftermarket in the next 5 to 10 years and the urgent call for talent acquisition within the sector. Don't miss out on this critical discussion about the future of the automotive industry! Enjoy the interview!
Alex: Thanks a lot for having us today here in your beautiful offices in Bad Homburg. Let’s talk a bit about globalone and what are you doing here before we talk about Repdate.
Marcus: globalone is the youngest ITG out of the six ITGs that we have on the market. I’m sure with a completely different setup and mindset. We are only working in the EMEA and America’s regions. We are hosting today 16 shareholders. These 16 shareholders are all family-owned companies. That is a very important topic and that maybe also differentiates us from all other ITGs, because it allows immediate and strong decisions. And it’s also a reality as I already mentioned earlier, not looking for development in the Asia Pacific region course we we do not see and feel there is a value added. globalone is strongly committed to the independent aftermarket, first of all, to his shareholders and our contractor suppliers. And this is one of the roles of the ITGs, to make both sides happy.
Alex: When did you hear about Repdate, and why did you start thinking about joining it?
Marcus: That’s quite an interesting story for me personally. After a short term after I became a managing director of global one, let me say it was only a couple of months… Thomas Vollmar, the former president of Carat, suggested global one should join the Repdate project. For me personally cause I was already aware of Caruso, this time called Yellow Box, I had no problem convincing myself. However, it was essential to convince our shareholders to make such a significant investment in the coming years. This investment did not come from the service fee we get from our suppliers, but from our shareholders. They quickly realized that Repdate would provide a solution for booking platforms and telematic data transfer. Furthermore, without this solution, independent workshops would face significant challenges in the future as they would lack a comparable solution to existing Mercedes Me, My Audi, etc. So I am grateful that upon one shareholder meeting, they decided to join Repdate. It was undeniably a wise decision.
Alex: Marcus, what challenges do you think the aftermarket is currently facing, and how can Repdate help mitigate those?
Marcus: Well, we have to face the truth: our workshops are still far from digitalization. This slow progress towards digitalization is our biggest challenge because, without this, we will face significant issues in the future. Workshops need to be prepared to accept and work with the information the cars provide, thanks to Repdate’s telematic data feature. Advanced information like brake due dates or battery status that needs to be exchanged is crucial for future independent workshops as it streamlines the entire value chain and logistics process. They can then order parts in advance, allowing suppliers to forecast and optimize the logistics issue. Repdate will be able to provide solutions for these problems in the future. The predictive maintenance topic should definitely be our clear target.
Alex: But why do you have trust in the Repdate solution?
Marcus: I’ve been a supporter of this idea from the beginning, so it’s easy for me to answer this question. Thanks to the current active companies driving Repdate, we have gotten a small part of independent market stakeholders to work together, even in competitive situations. Take for example the project we, Global One Automotive, are doing with ATR and Carat. Even though we are usually competitors in the market, we’ve all realized that we can only bring this important topic as one. I invite other ITGs and distributors to join this Repdate initiative, as it’s worth it. I believe any fleet acting Europe-wide would not accept just a regional or national solution. I would not get tired of motivating other ITGs and distributors to join this initiative because it is worth it.
”Thanks to the current active companies driving Repdate, we have gotten a small part of independent market stakeholders to work together, even in competitive situations.
Marcus HähnerManaging Director Global One Automotive
Alex: Lastly, where do you see the aftermarket in the next 5 to 10 years? It’s challenging, like reading a crystal ball. But one constant that we can mention is the ongoing consolidation process in the supplier industry and the trading side. Considering the numerous projects facing the independent aftermarket, especially the digitalization process linked to the optimization of the logistics process, it’s clear that the market will comprise fewer players in the future. Size is a matter of concern unless a company finds a niche or specializes in its region. Otherwise, medium-sized companies may face challenges. Even more worrying for our market is the lack of talents at all levels, especially in finding young mechanics for the workshops. My friend had to close down his once-thriving independent workshop due to this problem. Hence, we’ve started an initiative called “Talents 4 AA” to bring young people to the independent aftermarket. We have to understand as a market that Repdate is a necessary solution for our future, and the independent aftermarket is viable. The OEMs need the independent aftermarket as not all repairs on cars can be done by them. I believe this will be our game-changing point in the future.
Alex: Thank you very much for the insightful conversation about the aftermarket and Repdate. I look forward to speaking with you again in the future.
Marcus: I would like to conclude by saying: join us! It’s worth joining Repdate. Thank you.