Inchcape buys 70% stake in Chilean car distributor

Car dealership Inchcape said on Monday that it has bought a 70% stake in Ditec - the distributor of Porsche, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover in Chile - for an undisclosed sum.

The deal expands Inchcape's brand footprint, adding first-time distribution relationships with Porsche and Volvo, and further broadens its coverage with Jaguar Land Rover to 12 markets from eight in 2019.

Inchcape said Ditec will add about £130m of annualised revenue to the Americas & Africa region, its fastest-growing region, with pro-forma revenue of £1.3bn.

Chief executive Duncan Tait said: "We are pleased to announce another distribution acquisition in the Americas, expanding our growing footprint in the region and adding Porsche and Volvo, two leading premium brands to our list of OEM partners.

"This acquisition is a good example of our Accelerate strategy in action; leveraging our global distribution leadership to expand our footprint with both existing and new OEM partners - and using our distribution business as a platform to capture more of a vehicle's lifecycle value."

The remaining 30% interest in Ditec will be retained by company president Sebastian de Carcer.