North West-based car dealer Lookers has announced its first quarter results were "ahead of expectations" despite a "difficult environment" caused by the national lockdown.
The Altrincham firm said despite its sites remaining shut during the tough Covid restrictions imposed in January, it continued to take orders and fulfil vehicle handovers through its website, call centres and dealership teams.
In a trading update released on Thursday, the firm said the group sold over 44,000 new and used vehicles - 5,000 fewer than the same period last year - a figure that was "ahead of board expectations".
Mark Raban, CEO, said: "Despite the challenges presented by the third national lockdown, we have performed ahead of our expectations in Q1. Our colleagues and customers have shown great resilience and flexibility, fully embracing new technology, amidst a difficult environment.
"The events of the last year have highlighted the inherent strength of our franchised dealership model and the importance of an integrated customer experience which fully embraces both digital and physical channels and we have been able to enhance our online capabilities at pace.
"As we emerge from lockdown restrictions, we look forward to welcoming customers back to our dealerships and with new technology and improvements to the Lookers proposition, we are well placed to capitalise on the many opportunities ahead."
In terms of new vehicles, the group said car registrations to retail and fleet customers were 12% down on the last quarter, while retail registrations were 18% down.
Against this backdrop, the group said it had "significantly outperformed" the UK retail market with flat like-for-like unit sales, achieving a market share of around 7%.
Used vehicle sales were down 6% on last year, while aftersales remained "resilient" at 3% below last year's figure.
The group's dealerships in England will reopen on Monday in line with the Government's lockdown roadmap.
The statement added: "Given ongoing uncertainty around both Covid-19 and consumer sentiment, the board believes it is right to remain cautious about the outlook for the remainder of the year.
"However, based on the better than expected performance in Q1, the Board's expectation for underlying profit before tax for the full year ended 31 December 2021 is now materially ahead of the current analyst consensus."
