Automobil April 2023

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Wilken Communication Management

Advertising Sales

Communication Management for the Retail

Motor Industry Organisation. The views and

opinions expressed in the publication are not

necessarily those of the publishers or the Retail

Motor Industry Organisation. While precau

tions have been taken to ensure the accuracy

of advice and information contained in edito

rial or advertisements, neither the publishers

nor the Retail Motor Industry Organisation can

accept responsibility for errors, misrepresenta

tions or omissions, or for any effect or conse

quence arising therefrom. Permission to repub

lish any article or image or part thereof must be

obtained in writing from the publishers.

www.automobil.co.za

April 2023

DriVEr’S SEAT

For information on the RMI and its workings, visit www.rmi.org.za or call 011 886 6300

EDiTOr’S lETTEr

s we enter the second quarter of 2023, I am delighted to report that

we have made great progress in the standardisation of our branding

amongst our membership.

Three years ago the RMI proudly launched a new corporate identity,

however we noticed that there were still members who had not replaced

their branding, so in September last year we advised members

that the RMI Board had approved a special project to fund

production of RMI branding material, specifically to assist

our members, in bringing their premises up to date with

the new RMI branding. This enables members to represent

our brand consistently and uniformly, as we appreciate

changes to signage can prove costly.

The new accredited branding has just returned from

the manufacturers and is ready for distribution to our

regions. Accredited RMI members in good standing

will receive free branding, which includes two

small and two large Accredited Member decals

as well as a high quality RMI Perspex board

to proudly display for staff and customers.

The branding is currently being distrib-

uted to all of our regional offices coun-

try-wide and will be ready for collection at

our regional offices shortly or at our planned regional roadshows later in the

year. Members will receive a letter imminently advising on all the relevant

arrangements.

We believe this is an excellent branding opportunity for members and

one which will definitely assist our members in transitioning to the new

RMI branding and thereby ensuring that the RMI’s corporate identity is

adhered to.

Showing our best face with the correct logo, is vitally important as it is

the one element that makes us distinctively recognisable by industry, key

stakeholders such as government, insurers, OE manufacturers and warran-

tee administrators, and most importantly, amongst the motoring public.

It allows the RMI to provide you, our members, with tangible evidence

of the importance in belonging to the RMI and helps create a feeling of

cohesion amongst our members and it should also assist in attracting con-

sumers to member businesses.

I thank you for your support and really encourage all associations to

embrace the change and find innovative ways of encouraging members to

make the change if they have not already done so. Let’s work together to

ensure all old branding is replaced. 

Jakkie Olivier

RMI Chief Executive Officer

Showing our best face –

accredited branding is ready

The transport sector defied expectations of under-perfor-

mance in the fourth quarter of 2022 to be the best sectoral

performer, admittedly amongst multiple laggards. The neg-

ative impact of the prolonged Transnet strike had depressed

the transport sector’s contribution, with the sector growing by

only 0.7% on a quarterly seasonally adjusted basis compared

to growth of 3.6% in the third quarter.

The ongoing challenges of harsh load shedding, inflated liv-

ing costs, high production costs due to high fuel prices, rising

wage demands and elevated interest rates, all contributed to

the country’s dismal economic performance in the fourth quar-

ter of 2022. With little indication of a notably different economic

environment in 2023, but rather even lower economic growth

forecasted for 2023 compared to 2022, the economic environ-

ment is expected to remain dismal and challenging.

This performance by businesses that form part of the auto-

motive industry is remarkable and shows just how resilient the

industry has been. But for how long can this continue? Surely

at some stage something has to give?

Vehicle industry experts warn that vehicle pricing might be in

for a tough time. While stock levels have normalised factors such

as the exchange rate have resulted in substantial new vehicle

price increases. In addition, the effects of low stock volumes

during the COVID-19 period could soon be felt in the pre-owned

market. With low sales numbers in 2020 there is now no one to

two-year-old stock available in the pre-owned market and buy-

ers who traditionally shopped in that market now need to look

elsewhere, either at more affordable new vehicles or older pre-

owned vehicles as the stretch to a new model in their traditional

segment is simply too much for already pressured budgets.

The industry is going to have to seriously consider innovative

financing options such as plans that allows motorists to drive the

vehicle they want without the burden of a traditional finance to

own repayment agreement. I suspect the current market might

force an accelerated move to the popularisation of leasing mod-

els. This in turn will have an effect on the automotive aftermar-

ket as motorists will no longer be responsible or have the ability

to choose who services and repairs their vehicle, with that all

covered under the relevant leasing agreement.

This all sounds like a serious disruption for the automotive

industry but as always, I suspect that the industry will display re-

silience and reward those that are innovative in their offering. 

reuben van Niekerk, reuben@automobil.org.za

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