John Mulholland Motors Group has been trading in Northern Ireland for over 25
years and has built up an enviable reputation for supplying Skoda and Hyundai cars
throughout the Province, backed by excellent customer service.

The company is now the number one Skoda retailer in Northern Ireland, selling 600 new
and 200 used Skodas a year. It is also the third largest Hyundai retailer in the Province,
selling 350 new and 100 used models a year.

Operating from its main site at Randalstown, a 20 minute drive from Belfast, the Group
also operates a Ford Franchise, selling 175 new and 125 used models a year, and a
smaller Proton operation. There is also a Prestige used car showroom as part of a used
car operation selling 275 units per annum.

The business opened its second site, at Campsie near Derry, in March this year where it
also operates Skoda and Hyundai franchises.

Switch to Navigator pays big dividends

The John Mulholland Group has been using the Navigator DMS system from Sheffield-
based Dealer Management Services for 12 months after switching over from the Gemini
system it used formerly – a move which has brought big dividends for the business.

The Gemini system had been far too restricting, said Shayne Quigg, financial controller
at John Mulholland, and was actually proving a barrier to growth.

“If we had kept our previous system there is no chance we could have expanded to
another site. When we opened our second outlet at Campsie, the integration with
Navigator was seamless and now we do not have any fears about adding further sites to
the Group,” he said.

The Group, which employs some 47 staff, uses Navigator throughout the business, now
at both sites, with up to 40 staff using the system at any one time.

It is used to manage all aspects of the business including sales, service, parts and
management accounts and has literally transformed the way the business operates.

Scrapping allowance is growth springboard

The catalyst for switching DMS suppliers was the Government-backed scrappage
allowance scheme that prevailed from 2009-10. During this period, the John Mulholland
Group saw fantastic sales growth with Hyundai sales up almost 100% and Skoda up 45%.

“We realised at this time that sales volumes of this level required better controls than
our existing system offered us and so we began evaluating other systems,” explained
Shayne Quigg.

On a recommendation, Quigg contacted Dealer Management Services and was
surprised, and delighted, to receive a phone call back from managing director, Simon
Verona.

“That level of service from the MD himself certainly impressed us, but in truth the level
of customer service has not fallen since the initial contact. DMS has impressed us with
their commitment, effort and intensity, while the same could not be said for some of
their competitors,” he said.

The introduction of Navigator has brought a much greater level of functionality and
transparency across the business. Mulholland was actually the first dealership in the
UK to use new Skoda vehicle interfaces on the system, which were derived from the
interfaces that DMS developed for parent Volkswagen.

“The introduction of Navigator has changed our business dramatically. Now we can
access any detail on the system from anywhere in the world, as our MD sometimes does
from his holiday home.

“The support staff at DMS are very good at responding to our needs as well as turning
round new releases very quickly. The system is continually evolving and improving and
the staff are very proactive in evaluating what the vehicle manufacturers are doing.

“We call Navigator the Skoda of the DMS world. It is very dependable in getting you
from A to B, but not many people know just how good it actually is,” he added.