JCT600 defends acquisition as OFT begins probe

Bradford-based JCT600, a family firm with a long history in the motor industry, announced in March it had bought Sheffield-based Gilder Group, taking it to 50 branches and strengthening its position in South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

The deal also gave the group a bigger slice of the lucrative Audi and Volkswagen market.

JCT600 bought the £200m turnover Gilder operation from outgoing chief executive Garry Scotting in a deal thought to be worth between £20m and £30m. It confirmed at the time that it had paid an eight-figure sum.

Yesterday, John Tordoff, chief executive of JCT600, said: “Following the recent acquisition of the Gilder Group by JCT600, we have been approached by the OFT who have the authority to investigate mergers and acquisitions in the UK.

“We are currently providing them with the information they have requested in order that they can conclude their routine investigation as soon as possible.

“We are firmly of the view that the acquisition has not led to a substantial lessoning of competition.”

A spokesman from the OFT said the process is at the invitation to comment stage, adding: “The invitation to comment effectively marks the start of the investigation and we should aim to report back within 40 working days, if not before.”

The deal with Gilder Group took JCT600’s workforce from 1,350 to over 1,800, and included nine of Gilder’s car and commercial vehicle dealerships, two parts depots and a body shop.

Last month, Mr Tordoff told the Yorkshire Post JCT600’s turnover will be “nudging” £900m in 2013 following the acquisition.

JCT600 reported sales of £669m in the year ending December 2012, up 7.4 per cent on the previous year.

The Gilder Group was founded in 1938 by William Gilder in Sheffield and became the first Volkswagen dealership to open in the UK in 1953.

JCT600, which was established in 1946, has 47 dealerships throughout Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire and the North East and sells brands including Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Ferrari, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Vauxhall and Volkswagen. In recent years Mr Tordoff has made a number of acquisitions to expand the group.

On its website, the OFT said that it is considering whether the agreement between JCT600 and Gilder Group has resulted in the creation of “a relevant merger situation” under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002.

It said that if so, it will look at whether it has resulted, or may be expected to result, in “a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services”.