- Cazoo proposes to wind down operations in mainland Europe to
focus on core UK market
- EU withdrawal ensures business has a plan that removes
requirement for further funding
- UK used car market largest in Europe with c.8m transactions
worth over £100bn annually
- Cazoo well-positioned to capture the enormous UK market
opportunity over the long-term
- Focus on cash preservation and now expecting to reach Company
breakeven by end 2023
- Expected net savings of over £100m by end of 2023 resulting
from withdrawal from the EU
- Employee consultations to start immediately in each market with
the relevant unions notified
- Record UK revenues and retail unit sales in August despite
tough macro-economic backdrop
Cazoo Group Ltd (NYSE: CZOO) (“Cazoo” or “the Company”), the
UK’s leading online car retailer, which makes buying and selling a
car as simple as ordering any other product online, is today
announcing the conclusion of the strategic review of its EU
business.
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220908005166/en/
Line up of Cazoo single car transporters
(Photo: Business Wire)
On August 2, 2022, the Company announced that it was conducting
a strategic review of its business in mainland Europe, with the aim
of further preserving cash and positioning the Company to achieve
profitability without the need for further external capital.
Following a review of a range of strategic options, management
has concluded that the right course of action is for Cazoo to now
focus exclusively on its core opportunity in the UK, an enormous
addressable market with approximately 8 million used car
transactions and a value of over £100 billion annually.
Growth in the UK remains strong, with retail unit sales up over
100% year-on-year in July and August, despite the challenging
macro-economic backdrop. The demand for our proposition leaves
management very excited about the future opportunity for Cazoo and
its ability to capture a 5% or greater UK market share.
The plan to withdraw from the EU is based on the material
further investment that would be required for Cazoo to continue to
scale its operations in the EU and the conflict this has with the
Company’s priorities of cash conservation and achieving
profitability without the need for additional capital.
As a result, the Company intends to commence an orderly wind
down of its operations in Germany and Spain and is in consultation
with its employee representatives in France and Italy. Cazoo will
facilitate a structured closure for its customers, employees and
suppliers and has notified the relevant employee representatives
and unions in each market.
It is expected that the Company will achieve cash savings of
over £100m, net of any wind down costs, as a result of its
withdrawal from the EU, by the end of 2023. The Company believes
that this decision will materially expedite its path to
profitability and removes the requirement to raise any additional
external funding.
The Company is now targeting cash flow breakeven by the end of
2023, at which point the Company expects to still have
approximately £100m of cash on its balance sheet. The EU businesses
represented <10% of Company revenues and retail units in H1 2022
and the Company believes this decision should have limited impact
on its 2022 revenue and unit targets.
Alex Chesterman OBE, Founder & CEO of Cazoo,
commented, “Given our target of reaching profitability by the
end of next year, we have taken the tough decision to focus solely
on the huge UK used car market, worth over £100bn+ annually. I
would like to thank all our colleagues in the EU who are impacted
by this decision, and we will of course look to support them in
every way possible. We have built a market leading platform, team,
brand and infrastructure in the UK, where we have now sold over
90,000 retail units since launch, despite the challenging
macroeconomic backdrop. The strong customer demand we are seeing in
the core UK business gives us high confidence in the future
opportunity and the decision we have taken today to withdraw from
mainland Europe ensures that our balance sheet remains strong and
that we have a plan which we believe no longer requires any further
external funding.”
About Cazoo - www.cazoo.co.uk
Our mission is to transform the car buying and selling
experience across the UK by providing better selection, value,
transparency, convenience and peace of mind. Our aim is to make
buying or selling a car no different to ordering any other product
online, where consumers can simply and seamlessly buy, sell or
finance a car entirely online for delivery or collection in as
little as 72 hours. Cazoo was founded in 2018 by serial
entrepreneur Alex Chesterman OBE and is a publicly traded company
(NYSE: CZOO).
Forward-Looking Statements
This communication contains “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of the “safe harbour” provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The expectations,
estimates, and projections of the business of Cazoo may differ from
its actual results and, consequently, you should not rely on
forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. These
forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words
“believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,”
“strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “may,” “should,”
“will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,”
and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are
predictions, projections and other statements about future events
that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a
result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could
cause actual future events to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not
limited to: (1) the implementation of and expected benefits from
our business realignment plan, the winddown of operations in
mainland Europe and other cost-saving initiatives; (2) realizing
the benefits expected from the business combination (the “Business
Combination”) with Ajax I; (3) achieving the expected revenue
growth and effectively managing growth; (4) executing Cazoo’s
growth strategy in the UK; (5) achieving and maintaining
profitability in the future; (6) global inflation and cost
increases for labor, fuel, materials and services; (7) geopolitical
and macroeconomic conditions and their impact on prices for goods
and services and on consumer discretionary spending; (8) having
access to suitable and sufficient vehicle inventory for resale to
customers and reconditioning and selling inventory expeditiously
and efficiently; (9) availability of credit for vehicle financing
and the affordability of interest rates; (10) increasing Cazoo’s
service offerings and price optimization; (11) effectively
promoting Cazoo’s brand and increasing brand awareness; (12)
expanding Cazoo’s product offerings and introducing additional
products and services; (13) enhancing future operating and
financial results; (14) acquiring and integrating other companies;
(15) acquiring and protecting intellectual property; (16)
attracting, training and retaining key personnel; (17) complying
with laws and regulations applicable to Cazoo’s business; (18)
successfully deploying the proceeds from the Business Combination
and the issuance of $630 million of convertible notes to an
investor group led by Viking Global Investors; and (19) other risks
and uncertainties set forth in the sections entitled “Risk Factors”
and “Forward-Looking Statements” in the Report on Form 6-K filed
with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) by
Cazoo Group Ltd on June 9, 2022 and in subsequent filings with the
SEC. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should
carefully consider the foregoing factors and the disclosure
included in other documents filed by Cazoo from time to time with
the SEC. These filings identify and address other important risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to
differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date
they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, and Cazoo assumes no obligation and
does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events,
or otherwise. Cazoo gives no assurance that it will achieve its
expectations.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220908005166/en/
Investor Relations: Cazoo: Robert Berg, Director of
Investor Relations and Corporate Finance, investors@cazoo.co.uk
ICR: cazoo@icrinc.com Media: Cazoo: Lawrence Hall, Group
Communications Director, lawrence.hall@cazoo.co.uk Brunswick: Chris
Blundell/Simone Selzer +44 20 7404 5959 /
cazoo@brunswickgroup.com
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