Autocar Awards 2021 Outstanding UK leaders: Eddie Hawthorne

Like many of his colleagues in the automotive retail sector, Hawthorne retells the story with a gravitas that underlines just how serious those months of closure were and just how hard-won the strides taken to ensure the darkest days haven’t returned even in the latest lockdowns. Through a combination of sharp cost control, a sometimes booming market (especially around used sales, where Arnold Clark moved fast to offer a nationwide £99 deposit system for any car sold online) and fast-paced change, profits have remained strong.

“Car retailers were fortunate in being allowed to reopen earlier than some [non-car] retailers,” he continues. “That gave us hope, but even then we knew we had to move fast to make sure we could keep going, come what may, in future. New and used sales were strong coming out of lockdown, but at the same time we invested in accelerating our digital journey. We probably moved five years forward in five months in terms of digital sales, the acceptance of them from customers and so on.

“We had to learn to do that. It’s another credit to our staff that they came in with the mindset to adapt and learn new skills in the craziest circumstances. We were asking ourselves how we shape the business for the future to navigate more problems while trying to deal with customers who had more time on their hands than they’ve ever had.”

Hawthorne rates communication as the key element to keeping everyone motivated. “We’ve always tried to be an open, upfront, approachable board, led, of course, by myself. Our staff appreciate that,” he says. “Even if you’ve got to tell them bad news, then I believe you should do it with honesty: tell them why, and the reasons for it. Treat them with respect. We have an ‘Ask The Boss’ email that is open to everyone and comes into my office. In 2019, I got 111 questions; for the past year, I’ve topped 2000 now. I will answer them all, either myself or from the person best placed to do so. By answering directly, you remove the vacuum of people feeling they don’t know.”

Familiarity – and the confidence that has come with it – has also played a key role, says Hawthorne: “There was understandable anxiety around how safe our workers were, how they could do their jobs effectively, even whether they’d have a job longer term. But for most, that has lifted with time. We’ve demonstrated and learned what we can and can’t do, and we’ve been rigorous in our standards. The stress of the latest lockdowns has not been nearly as great, as we have learned to live with so much.”

The journey isn’t over, of course, but Hawthorne – who, despite his insistence on accepting this Autocar Award only on behalf of all his workers, wins for his calm leadership, decisive actions and ability to move forward even in adversity during these most difficult times – talks about the future with positivity, eyeing more growth for the group.

“In 2019, we sold 320,000 new and used cars,” he says. “Last year, we sold just over a quarter of a million, so that dented turnover. This year, I want to see us getting close to 320,000 again, and I think even with some of the challenges around new car stock levels, that’s possible. And then we’re chasing 400,000 cars a year within two to three years.”

That kind of growth won’t come with a buoyant market alone, however, hinting that Hawthorne and his team expect to be on the front foot when it comes to expansion and acquisition, even beyond their status now as Britain’s biggest car seller by volume, a trend that has played out for some decades as car retailing has galvanised around the biggest players. “We want to grow in the right way, which has to be structured,” he says. “We’re a volume player, built on selling cars at scale. We’ve got some ideas around more click-and-collect centres, and a few other nice ideas in the pipeline I won’t share, but we’re confident in our future, despite what’s going on around us now.”