BMW opens pre-owned sales centre in Oman

Muscat: As in the rest of the world, the automobile industry in Oman is preparing for tough times.

In a pragmatic move as new car sales slow, the BMW Group Middle East is opening a sales centre in Oman for premium pre-owned vehicles.

This is the eighth BMW Premium Selection (BPS) Centre in the region, Michael Hiller, Area Manager for BMW Group Middle East, said at a press conference held at local BMW dealers Al Jenaibi's new facility. He added that BMW's-industry leading global pre-owned car programme had also been implemented in other Gulf Cooperation Council countries, as well as Jordan.

BMW will also open such facilities in Iran, Lebanon and Syria, he added.

"We don't see vehicles on offer at this pre-owned programme as second-hand units, but [as part of] our efforts to give people affordable BMW cars," he said in reply to a question.

"We see potential to attract and engage a lot more customers for the BMW brand through this initiative," Johnny Oommen, Head of Operations with Al Jenaibi International Automobiles, said, adding that customers buying pre-owned vehicles would be given a one-year warranty.

He further explained that the price of a pre-owned vehicle would be determined by the age of the vehicle and its mileage.

"We will sell only cars that have done less than 100,000 kilometres and have been serviced at authorised BMW outlets," he said.

Hiller said that the idea behind BPS was to offer the same peace of mind that comes with buying a brand new vehicle.

"Since we first introduced the programme in September 2007, we have sold 1,761 units. Interestingly, we saw a spike in our regional BPS sales in the fourth quarter of 2008, confirming the attractiveness of our offering during a period of economic slowdown," he said.

Hiller said that although the industry was slowing, BMW had posted a five per cent sales growth in 2008. This represented a slower rate of growth than in previous years, but he said the company was satisfied under the circumstances.

BMW Group Middle East sold 15,959 vehicles in 2008, compared with 15,150 vehicles in 2007. However, the 2007 sales represented a 14 per cent increase over the year before.

With the slowdown more apparent in the last quarter of 2008, the pre-owned car market seems to be peaking.

As a result of the global credit crisis impacting all countries, companies and people, many customers now see a used vehicle purchased from BMW's certified programme as a more cost effective and reliable alternative, Hiller said.

Asked if Al Jenaibi planned to retrench any staff in coming months, Oommen was non-committal.

"At the moment we are lean and trim and in Oman the automobile business situation has not worsened as much as elsewhere in the world," he said, adding that it would be pre-mature to make a judgement.

However, he agreed that conservatism was widespread.

At a time when caution has become a watchword, the pre-owned vehicle option may prove to be a boon.