Jonathan Prime joined the Board of Directors at EvoBus (UK) at the beginning of 2019. He plans to continue the dealer’s coach market leadership while preparing for electric buses
For most coach dealerships, 2020 will be a ‘holding’ year. That’s much the case for EvoBus (UK). But it is also the second year that has begun with Jonathan Prime in position as Director, Mercedes-Benz Sales.
Jonathan took up that position at the beginning of 2019. The business performed well last year; it saw a record volume of coach sales, with over 300 Tourismos going to UK and Irish operators.
But that was against a challenging period in the middle of the year that halted registrations for a period. The dealership has rebounded successfully from that. Jonathan expects 2020 to be equally buoyant volume-wise, with a similar number of sales as 2019 predicted.
Jonathan has been with EvoBus (UK) for 12 years, but he has worked in the industry for longer. His previous role with the Coventry business dealt only with coaches, but as he has stepped up to become a member of the Board of Directors, that remit has grown.
“I am now involved with the whole of the business. It is enjoyable to get into areas that I was not previously engaged with. In particular, that involves battery-electric buses, which will become part of what we do when the eCitaro arrives.”
With EvoBus (UK) being wholly owned by Daimler Buses, a significant opportunity is presented by the means to share best practice with colleagues in other nations. Doing that is one of his priorities.
“With the Tourismo we are the UK market leader, but the global culture at Daimler Buses is that we can always learn from other nations. For example, at a gathering of salespeople from across Europe recently, we gave a presentation on our sales open days,” he says.
Coach and bus priorities
Promotion to Director level allows Jonathan to concentrate on strategy. His priority, and a task given to regional sales managers, is to grow Tourismo volumes further. To start that off, each of those individuals has been given a brief: Compose a list of the operators that they did not sell to in 2019.
“That’s part of our strategy of taking a step back and looking at what we will do differently this year,” adds Jonathan.
“Breaking into those businesses will be no easy task. It is about forming a plan of how we can work with those companies – and our list of potential conquest customers is always reducing.”
Jonathan is not only concerned with straight deals on new vehicles to boost market share. His approach is more about “the whole package,” he says. That can refer to any number of optional extras that add value for both the customer and the supplier.
“We have gained a lot of business from other manufacturers. It is natural that they will seek to take that back. We will never be the outright cheapest, so our policy is to build something that is tailored to what the customer requires during the time that the coach is with them.”
Market forces in play
One of EvoBus (UK)’s strengths during recent years has been its ability to supply stock Tourismos rapidly. That will remain the case for both two- and three-axle examples, although the dealership has seen two-axle models come to dominate new sales.
12m and 13m Tourismos to that layout account for 40% and 33% of the model’s sales respectively. That gives the dealership certainty when placing stock orders, but choosing which interior trim level to go for is more difficult. The mid-range Touring specification is what 90% of Tourismos now have.
The promised shorter Tourismo K is still on the agenda, but it will be released later than first thought. Even so, “we will get that model at the same time as left-hand drive markets,” says Jonathan.
“Development of UK and Irish coach business in recent years has placed us on the map. That was why we were able to push successfully to get the new Tourismo at the same time as the rest of Europe when it was launched in 2018.”
PSVAR compliance is available across all four Tourismo variants. Some such examples are available from stock. PSVAR has further complicated ordering; naturally, it comes at added cost and it is something that is still of no relevance to some customers.
Buyers holding tight or not?
Several coach dealerships are thinking closely about what 2020’s retail sales total is likely to be. There is no doubt that this will be a challenging year. There is evidence that some operators look likely to sit tight in 2020. Others continue to invest strongly with an eye on emission control zones and PSVAR.
EvoBus (UK) can offer in-house operational leasing through Mercedes-Benz Financial Services. That option has proved to be fruitful for it in the past. It also benefits buyers, as leasing should insulate them from unpredicted, short-notice market changes that may impact the value of used coaches.
That aside, Jonathan notes that in the longer term it is becoming more difficult for leasing companies to accurately set residual values.
Even so, EvoBus (UK) continues to see growing interest in leasing. He is not the first to suggest that it is destined to become a major part of the industry’s vehicle procurement methodology, despite the challenges surrounding residual values.
“You need only look at the logistics sector to see how leasing has taken hold. Very few operators there purchase vehicles.”
Another added-value element that EvoBus (UK) believes will continue to evolve is its OMNIplus ON digital services product. Since 2018 all Tourismo vehicles come fully equipped with the OMNIplus ON system. The most comprehensive service is ON advance: it defines the movement towards preventative maintenance. A unit within the vehicle constantly monitors status and checks for faults- from a bulb failure, to activation of the ‘Regeneration Lock’. If an item that requires attention is found, a report is sent to both the customer and the customer’s chosen OMNIplus Service Centre.
Electric mobility is coming
From the day the battery-electric eCitaro bus was launched, Daimler Buses was clear that it would be built in right-hand drive. Strategy for the eCitaro differs from that for the current model Tourismo; the eCitaro is already in service in left-hand drive form, but EvoBus (UK) is hoping it will arrive here in Q4 2021.
That is not to suggest that EvoBus (UK) is resting on its laurels until then. It has already started the learning process and is in the market talking to potential buyers. eCitaros built for the UK and Ireland will come with second-generation batteries; solid state energy storage will be available as an option.
London operators are not currently among those that EvoBus (UK) is talking to about the eCitaro. At 12m, it is likely that it will be too long for their needs, and the shorter Citaro K will not be offered with battery-electric propulsion. An articulated eCitaro will be available in right-hand drive. It is expected to appeal to some airports for high-volume shuttle work.
Pushing the brand onwards
Introducing the eCitaro is one of EvoBus (UK)’s priorities in the medium term. In the coach market, the current model Tourismo is well established. The stable, four-strong full-sized line-up will be complemented by the mid-sized Tourismo K as the next step.
Jonathan’s focus for coaches is thus to take the Tourismo to even more new buyers. Daimler Buses has identified that there will be a need for a zero-emission coach offering in time, but what form it will take has yet to be formulated. Any possible eTourismo is many years in the future, he adds.
In a nutshell, cultivating relationships with customers old and new while bringing more added-value options to the table is where Jonathan sees EvoBus (UK) going in the future. It will remain a force to be reckoned with; of that, there can be no doubt.
