Özgözde Automotive Ankara Branch Manager Sezgin Işık: We Do Not Make Up The Truck For The Work; We Produce Trucks For The Work'

"NOW WE CAN RESPOND TO THE MARKET AND DEMANDS"

Expressing the expectations in the commercial vehicle market in 2020 and evaluating the impact of the pandemic process on the market, Sezgin Işık said that; “2019 was a very difficult year in terms of the commercial vehicle market of 3.5 tons and above. We had to fight in a shrinking market; but our expectations from 2020 were high. There were requests that we were following, which were delayed, and we predicted that these demands, which were postponed in 2019, will come in 2020. We made our plans according to this estimation, we completed our personnel investment and stock work. Later, the 2020 commercial vehicle market started above our estimations. We made serious sales especially in January and February. As Özgözde Automotive; if we think of the pandemic's starting process as March 15, we achieved a sales of over 50 percent in the first two and a half months compared to the same period last year. Under normal economic conditions; the commercial vehicle market is low in January and February; however, contrary to this trend, we realized an above-normal sales in January and February. However, as of March 15, with the spread of the Covid-19 virus to our country, sales slowed down and this process continued until the end of May. Of course, there were the lockdown and some restrictions during this period. However, we have responded to the demands of our customers, whose logistics are continuing, and even accelerating in this process, engaged in food, medicine and cold chain logistics, and we have sold vehicles. With the effect of having the right and suitable stock, we survived the pandemic period without any damages.”

"We Believe That Demands Will Increase Again And Let Us Make Good Sales If The Second Wave Does Not Happen”

Continuing his words by expressing the effects of the pandemic process on the sector and stating that the sales will increase if the possibility of the second wave does not happen, Işık said that; “Especially in the light and medium commercial group; we started to see that the effects of the pandemic decreased in May. In April 2020, the total market decreased by about 23 percent compared to the same period of 2019. However, with the lifting of the bans and restrictions in May, there was an increase of 46 percent in the total market compared to May 2019. We think that this ratio will increase; we believe that if the second wave does not emerge, the demands will reappear and this will have a positive effect on our sales.”

"We Are Prepared Against The Possibility of A Second Wave"

Stating that they are prepared against the possibility of a second wave expected for Covid-19, Işık said that; “We represent an imported brand; our factories are in Europe. We do not know the pandemic process there, whether the second wave will come or not. Our two large factories are among the European countries experiencing the pandemic most intensely; In Italy and Spain. Therefore, we begin to see the effects of the processes there. A possible new wave that will occur in autumn may affect us especially in the last quarter of the year when we reached high sales volumes. But we are also prepared against the possibility of a second wave. We have completed our preparation. We are in a position to serve our customers with our vehicle and spare parts stock. Although we were minimized in our working processes during the pandemic period, we did not distribute our staff. We protect our staff before the pandemic, after the pandemic and even increase it in some units. We are ready to meet future demands in all of our Ankara, Eskişehir and Bursa branches.

"We Keep Our Customer Satisfaction As High As Possible"

Expressing that they attach great importance to customer satisfaction, Işık said about this situation as follows: “This is entirely related to the business perspective. After selling the vehicle, there is a service leg where we will have a long-term relationship with the customer. It is not enough to provide a good workmanship service in the service, the most important factor there is parts availability. We aim to serve our customers with the appropriate spare parts stock without having their vehicle in service for a long time. We are trying to provide service as a whole with our expert staff in vehicle sales and our expert and continuous training team in our technical service. In this way, we keep our customer satisfaction as high as possible.

“We Serve 24/7 with Both Via Digital Media and Phones”

Emphasizing that its customers can reach Özgözde Automotive at any time, Işık said that; “We provide 24/7 service both via digital media and phones. Especially when structuring our vehicle sales team, we attach great importance to active sales. As we serve the commercial sector, we provide on-site sales services to our customers. This service does not stop after selling the vehicle. The same staff make frequent visits to question the performance and proper use of the vehicle. We keep the vehicle under control in all periodic maintenance after the vehicle is sold. In addition, we provide 24-hour roadside assistance in the regions we serve. In this way, we have the chance to intervene as soon as possible. If there is a fault that can be remedied, we intervene in the vehicle where it is located. If there is a breakdown that cannot be solved on site, we intervene as soon as possible by taking our vehicle to the service and put the vehicle back on the road.”

"As a Company, We Attach Importance To Employee Investment"

Expressing that they are working with an expert team as Özgözde Automotive, Işık said that; “Most of our employees are long-time employees. Here, we attach importance to employee investment as a company. The quality of the work increases when long-term work and vocational and technical training are taken in this process. We have a service capacity to serve 20-25 vehicles at the same time in all our branches. We work with fully qualified and trained staff. We specialize and serve our employees as separate units in both heavy vehicles and middle class commercial truck-van groups.”

"Iveco Is Exactly A Commercial Vehicle Manufacturer And Can Answer All Sectors That Need A Commercial Vehicle"

Stating that they produce vehicles according to the work and made statements to the customers of the Iveco brand, Işık said that; “We name those who always prefer the Iveco brand as “loyal customers” and the number of these customers continues to increase day by day. The biggest reason for choosing Iveco is that Iveco is exactly a commercial vehicle manufacturer and can answer all sectors that need a commercial vehicle. As Iveco, we always recommend the right vehicle for the right work. Even tailor-made vehicles can be produced according to work and needs. We configure the appropriate vehicle according to the carrying capacity, case length, road conditions used, superstructure used and all similar conditions that our customers need and offer them to their use. In short, we do not make up the vehicle for the work; we produce vehicles for the work. This ensures that our customer satisfaction remains at high levels. This ensure our customer to carry the product it produces or sells with the right vehicle. This gives our customers a great advantage. We continue this advantage after sales. We work with expert engineers and technical staff in our service. Now, some of our vehicles can also be accessed via digital satellite in a digital environment, and malfunctions can be detected and intervened. We make maximum effort to complete vehicle repairs as soon as possible and ensure that our customers return to work with their vehicle as soon as possible.”

“Especially In The Purchasing Process, The Most Important Issue We Put On The Table: Total Cost of Ownership”

Stating that there are studies that will produce solutions for the problems of its customers and that these studies are continuing, Işık said that; “We can do studies from time to time. In particular, we determine the needs of sectors that have certain needs and cannot meet these needs by listening to their problems. We are preparing packages to suggest solutions according to him. For example, we can give cooperatives or dealers of a brand or salesperson distributors. We can go to them with different solution suggestions with frequent promotions, presentations or campaigns. For this purpose, we hold meetings with company owners, logistics managers and head drivers, and even vehicle users. Especially in the purchasing process, the most important issue we put on the table: total cost of ownership. This formula constitutes the investment cost of the vehicle, the operating costs afterwards and the income to be obtained from selling the second hand. We attach great importance to this and try to enlighten our customers with this calculation.”

"We May Have A Set of Solution Suggestions and Campaigns with 6 Months of Postponement, with Reasonable Interest Rates""

Stating that they have campaigns that offer easy payment opportunities to their customers, Işık said on the subject that; “We have a finance campaign that continues with the slogan "Get now, start paying in 2021". We can shape our different solution proposals with 3 months or 6 months delay, with favorable interest rates, according to our customers payment plan. Currently, there are many sectors that are concerned about investment due to the period we are in but need to continue their business by 2021. Our brand implemented such a financial campaign in order to facilitate their work and to eliminate their financial problems. We are now in a position to meet the demands with these campaigns. We provide our customers the opportunity to pay with a 36-month maturity.”

"We Provide Theoretical and On-Vehicle Trainings to Users"

Stating that they provide training to the drivers and that the drivers also receive certificates at the end of these trainings, Işık said that; “Before delivering the vehicles, we provide both theoretical and practical training to the users. At the end of these trainings, we give certificate to them. First, we provide information about the vehicle in the form of a theoretical presentation, and then on-vehicle use training. Although our customer has used that vehicle before, changing technology and some legal obligations may differ from the driving characteristics they are used to. With these theoretical and on-vehicle trainings, we raise awareness of our users and help them ensure a safer and more efficient use.”

"High Market Share in Second Hand"

Işık, who also gave information about the second-hand sales of the Iveco brand, said that: “Iveco is in a good position in the second-hand market. As Özgözde Automotive, we are in a position to respond to all barter requests. We are trying to answer these requests regardless of brand. We don't expect much profit from our second hand operation. Our goal is to respond to customers' demands and prevent them from wasting too much time with a second hand. When we evaluate Iveco's second hand market; there is a high market share in all groups of trucks-vans-tow trucks. Not many new sold vehicles have been transformed, as users are generally satisfied. However, 3-4 year old vehicles can be released especially in the companies' self-renewal processes. Users are satisfied with the second hand prices. In short, Iveco is in demand in the market for the second hand. "

"BUR-CAN Automotive"

Referring to Bur-Can Automotive, a subsidiary company of Özgözde Automotive, Işık said that: “In Bur-Can Automotive, we are doing minibus transformation of Iveco Panelvan vehicles. We doubled our factory capacity with serious investments there, too. We are in a position to easily respond to requests from Turkey and abroad.”