Background
Anchor Vans have been leading the UK’s van dealership industry for over 30 years. With a rich history and the prestigious title of Motor Trader UK Van Dealer of the Year for two consecutive years, Anchor Vans prides itself on providing the highest quality new and used vans with exceptional customer service. Since 2004, Anchor Vans has been utilising Gemini Systems’ solutions. Before integrating Gemini’s Business Intelligence Dashboards, the company utilised PowerBI and Excel for creating accounting and DMS KPI reports. However, they faced challenges related to centralised user management and lacked a solution that could offer comprehensive control over their business data. Simon Joyce, the Managing Director, discusses the crucial role the dashboards have played in rethinking the way they progress the business.
Onboarding:
How easy or challenging was it to integrate our dashboards into your existing business process?
The onboarding was exceptionally smooth. Collaborating closely with the team at Gemini enabled us to deploy dashboards that seamlessly align with our business requirements. The dashboards provide a unified platform, offering easily accessible and visually compelling data crucial to our day-to-day operations.
Using the Dashboard:
Which features of the business intelligence dashboards do you find most useful?
For us, the dashboards’ most valuable features are real-time Stock, Sales, and Accessory Sales reports. These insights directly influence our buying decisions, enabling us to focus on acquiring stock that offers the highest profitability, requires the least preparation, and promises the quickest turnaround from purchase to sale, based on historical information in the DMS.
How has the dashboard impacted your day-to-day decision-making processes?
The dashboards have revolutionised our decision-making processes, allowing myself and the team to make informed, data-driven choices that have maximised profitability.
Can you provide an example of a business insight or decision that was made possible through use of the dashboard?
By developing a custom dashboard using the builder tool, we have effectively analysed our vehicle preparation workflow. This enables us to forecast the workflow for the service department. Furthermore, we’ve adapted our purchasing strategies based on insights gleaned from Stock and Sales dashboards, boosting our margins in the process.
Have there been any unexpected benefits from using the dashboard?
The dashboards have helped us identify stock anomalies and problematic vehicles—issues that might have otherwise slipped through the cracks, or at least not picked up in a timely manner.
Performance and Metrics:
How has the dashboard influenced your company’s performance metrics or KPIs?
The dashboards have simplified the distribution of KPI and management accounting data to our management team, empowering them to make crucial strategic decisions previously reserved for the Director team.
Have you noticed any significant changes in efficiency or productivity after using the dashboard?
We’ve seen substantial advancements in the efficiency and productivity of our prep processes and stock management, directly attributable to the dashboard’s insights.
Looking Ahead – The Future with Gemini Systems
How do you see your company using Gemini Systems’ dashboards in the long term?
We’re excited about collaborating with Gemini on the the dashboard’s future capabilities. We’ve recently developed a Prospecting Dashboard focused on customer retention, which is starting to yield valuable insights for the business.
Would you recommend the business intelligence dashboard to other dealerships looking to improve the visibility of their day to day?
“Absolutely. It’s an excellent tool for enhancing visibility into key KPIs and market trends, and it has had a directly measurable impact on our profitability.”
Get in touch
Anchor Vans’ partnership with Gemini Systems has not only resolved their previous challenges but has also propelled them towards a future of data-driven decision-making, efficiency, and sustained profitability. If you are currently experiencing similar challenges within your dealership, get in touch.
