Car market Used car prices are rising rapidly

Status: 22.06.2021 2:17 p.m.

Because of the often long delivery times for new cars, the market for used cars is booming – also on the Internet. But consumers should pay attention to a few things, especially when buying online.

From Till Bücker, tagesschau.de

Buy or sell a used car from the comfort of your own home with one click: The online market for used cars is becoming increasingly popular. So it is not surprising that the Berlin trading platform Auto1 has risen to the MDAX. The company, which was founded in 2012, was only launched in early February dared to go public – with success. Because with 1.8 billion euros it was the largest IPO in Germany after almost one and a half years. The Auto1 Group claims to be Europe’s largest digital automotive platform with more than 450,000 cars sold last year. The company buys vehicles from private customers via wirkaufendeinauto.de as well as from dealers. These are then primarily passed on to other car dealers via auto1.com. But consumers have also been able to purchase new used vehicles through the Autohero brand since 2017. The private business is to be massively expanded with the fresh money from investors.

Semiconductor shortages delay deliveries

That could be worth it. Because according to calculations by the Metzler bank, the European market for used cars reaches around 600 billion euros. 2020 was due to long delivery times and falling demand for new cars during the Corona crisis a real boom . In July alone, according to figures from the Federal Motor Transport Authority, there were almost 750,000 car ownership transfers – more than ever before in a month and almost 100,000 more than in July 2019. This year, too, the transfers are well above the previous year’s figures.

The high demand is also reflected in the price development: During the prices for used e-cars have recently plummeted , the asking prices for used cars reached a new record high in May with an average of around 22,600 euros per vehicle. The buyers paid almost 200 euros more than in April and even around 2200 euros more than in May 2020, according to data from the online portal AutoScout24. Experts expect an increase as the semiconductor shortage is delaying the delivery of new cars worldwide and the supply of used cars is falling.

Platform growth opportunities

So far, however, only one percent of used cars have been sold online. “The used car market in Europe is still one of the last markets that go almost exclusively through brick-and-mortar retail,” said Tom Diedrich from the Metzler bank Deutschlandfunk . Therefore, there are still great growth opportunities for online platforms.

A first trend seems to be emerging. “We are seeing a real boom,” said Stefan Schneck, sales manager for the German market at AutoScout24. For example, the number of contacts made by potentially interested parties shot up by 40 percent at times in May. According to a current AutoScout24 survey of more than 1000 users, car fans see a good alternative to buying completely online: almost one in two (47 percent) would “definitely” or “maybe” order their car from the sofa. A year ago, only 35 percent of those surveyed were ready to do this.

Extreme bargains should make you suspicious

Buying a used car on the Internet has the advantage that interested parties can quickly and easily fall back on a huge range. A contract can be concluded at the push of a button, and the car is delivered to your doorstep. But regardless of whether it is on digital platforms such as Auto1 or via an exchange such as AutoScout24 or mobile.de, on which dealers or private individuals sell their vehicles directly: Consumers should pay attention to a few things when buying a used car.

First the price. For used cars, this depends on the model, year of construction, equipment, kilometers driven, wear and tear, extras and preferences. But how can a fair offer be recognized? “If you watch the market for your desired vehicle for a week or two, you get a very good feeling for a reasonable price,” explains Silvia Schattenkirchner, Head of Consumer Law at ADAC. Some exchanges such as mobile.de are now also giving ratings for offers from private individuals. Consumers should generally be cautious about extreme bargains. In addition, there is possible manipulation of the mileage. According to ADAC estimates, the so-called odometer has changed in every third used car. Verification is not easy. “It is best to have the mileage guaranteed,” advises Schattenkirchner. Otherwise, consumers could have repair invoices or TÜV certificates shown. Even comparing the kilometers driven with the year of construction is already informative in some cases.

Test drives essential

The expert considers test drives to be particularly important. “Buying a pig in a poke without a test drive, especially when it comes to used cars, is a big risk.” Only then should a contract be concluded. Schattenkirchner also advises against high down payments or other advance payments as well as purchases from abroad. In addition, consumers should be aware that contracts concluded online are also binding – for example by email. There are numerous scams on the Internet. The most common problems are listed on the website of the initiative “Safe car purchase on the Internet” from ADAC and the police crime prevention.

It is also not always easy for sellers of used cars. Platforms often promise higher prices than are ultimately paid. In order to find out how much one’s own car is still worth, the lawyer Schattenkirchner has two tips ready: “On the one hand, sellers can search for their own car and comparable offers. The other option are ADAC test centers.” Most of the time, only the initiation of business deals takes place on the Internet. “With mobile.de or AutoScout24 it is usually still the case that both parties are mediated,” said Schattenkirchner. The contract will still be concluded outside of the Internet. It remains to be seen whether the newcomer Auto1 will bring about long-term change

Amazon On “Prime Day” there is a strike

Status: 21.06.2021 1:11 p.m.

Ironically, during the “Prime Day” discount campaign, a strike is to take place at seven locations of the online retailer Amazon in Germany. In Bad Hersfeld, employees have already stopped working. At the online retailer Amazon, a few hundred employees in Bad Hersfeld went on strike today at the start of the “Prime Day” discount campaign, which is taking place today and tomorrow. The Verdi union called for a strike at seven Amazon locations. In addition to the two logistics locations in Bad Hersfeld, Hesse, these are Werne, Leipzig, Rheinberg, Bad Hersfeld, Koblenz and Graben. The background to the strike is the wage dispute that has been smoldering for years between the union and Amazon. Verdi has been fighting for years to ensure that Amazon employees get a collective agreement and are paid according to the tariff for retail and mail order.

According to Verdi, around 3,300 women and men work across all five shifts in Bad Hersfeld. Since Sunday night they have been called to participate in the action planned until Wednesday. On Monday morning, the union counted around 300 people absent from work.

Group: No impact for customers

“Amazon spends millions on advertising and makes billions of dollars in sales on the days of the campaign. The employees in the shipping centers have to cope with the influx of customers and don’t get a cent for the increased workload,” said Orhan Akman, who is responsible for retail and mail order at Verdi. Amazon said the group does not expect any impact on customers. Amazon already offers “excellent pay, excellent additional services and excellent career opportunities – all in a safe, modern work environment”.

A spokesman pointed out that the starting wages for all employees in the German logistics network would be increased to the equivalent of at least twelve euros gross per hour from July. In autumn 2022, this is expected to rise to 12.50 euros. In addition, Amazon pays a special allowance for overtime, life and disability insurance and contributions to company pension schemes.

“Far from recognition and respect”

Amazon’s payment currently lags behind Verdi’s tariff requirement in retail and mail order, which is 12.50 euros for all employees. The union is harshly criticizing the group: Verdi called the announced increase in starting salaries to twelve euros per hour “cynical and far from recognition and respect”. Amazon behaves “like a landlord” who, when in a good mood, “has a few benefits for his day laborers”. The trade union is demanding that the federal government facilitate the path to generally binding collective bargaining provisions so that all companies in the respective industry are bound by them.

Online competition is growing Fashion retail in upheaval

Status: 16.06.2021 7:16 p.m.

The sale of fashion on the Internet is booming: The Otto subsidiary About You, which launched successfully on the stock exchange today, is growing rapidly. Stationary fashion retailers, on the other hand, are increasingly disappearing. Do you still have a future? The former glamor of the fashion industry has long since vanished in German city centers. There is bare existential fear. Many fashion retailers feel they have been stripped down to the last shirt. In the corona pandemic, textile retailers and manufacturers had to give up in a row. Well-known names such as Escada, Hallhuber, Bonita, Appelrath Cüpper and Adler-Modemärkte filed for bankruptcy. More fashion retailers will soon follow, predict the credit insurer Euler Hermes and the textile trade association (BTE). Euler Hermes does not expect a return to pre-crisis levels until 2023.

“Home office and suit don’t go together”

During the lockdown, new clothes were hardly in demand. Who needs an expensive new outfit for work at home? “Home office and suit don’t go together,” says Gerd Oliver Seidensticker, President of German Fashion.

The turnover in the fashion industry shrank in the Corona year by more than 20 percent to around twelve billion euros. “The pandemic has plunged the fashion industry into a deep crisis,” complains German fashion boss Seidensticker. “Many of our companies are dependent on help from the state.”

Structural crisis even before Corona

But even before the pandemic, the stationary fashion houses were under pressure. Corona has accelerated the structural crisis in the industry. Sales in stationary retail have been declining for years. The death of fashion retailers began a long time ago. Between 2010 and 2019, the number of companies in the clothing industry fell by 31 percent, according to a study by the management consultancy PwC. Retail expert Gerrit Heinemann, retail expert at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences, speaks up tagesschau.de of a “collective restructuring case”.

The increasing low-cost competition from textile discounters such as Primark and the triumphant advance of online retail have long been troubling the classic fashion industry. Online retailers such as Zalando and About You are flourishing. Only H&M and Zara have successfully resisted the online competition and also held their own in the Corona crisis.

More and more mono labels

There is also a trend towards mono labels. More and more fashion manufacturers such as Hugo Boss or the sporting goods supplier Adidas are setting up their own flagship stores and selling their products there – to the chagrin of classic fashion retailers who traditionally follow the multi-label approach.

The end of the multi-month lockdown and the return of walk-in customers in the cities should give the stationary fashion retail some breathing space again in the short term. In the long run, however, the industry has to reinvent itself, demand experts. Only those who meet the needs of customers with innovative concepts will survive, says PwC retail expert Stefan Schwertel.

Regional or sustainable concepts as a way out?

Heinemann sees the Mannheim fashion retailer Engelhorn as a positive example. The company has focused on a regional market and now sells a good half of its clothing over the Internet.

Other fashion retailers focus on niches such as sustainability. Some also flee into the arms of their biggest competitor, Zalando. A good 2,400 stationary fashion retailers now also sell their clothing via the Zalando “Connected Retail” platform.

Model H&M and Zara

Above all, however, Zalando is using that and is not enough to save the stationary business permanently, complain experts like Gerrit Heinemann from the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences. “This is a one-way street.” In his opinion, stationary fashion retailers should primarily operate on demand in the future – following the example of H&M and Zara. In fact, C&A is currently starting to produce jeans “on demand” at the Mönchengladbach location in Germany.

The traditional fashion house Köhler from Hessen is breaking new ground. It offers fashion advice and sales via video. The customer fills out a questionnaire on the Internet before receiving a video consultation. During the video call, the customer then decides what he wants to have delivered to his home. The concept is particularly worthwhile with regular customers, says Paula Vordemfelde, managing director of Köhler. Her motto: “We have to be creative and be able to react quickly.”