20 Things You Didn’t Know About Cazoo
Cazoo is a company that sells used cars online. It offers a unique way for people to preview a variety of used vehicles from the convenience of their own homes. Customers may order online, pay for the cars, then have them delivered to their homes. Car buying doesn’t get easier than this. This is a timely method for selling cars. It allows for the contact less purchase of vehicles in times when the pandemic has forced many business closures. With stay-at-home orders for the general public, Cazoo filled the gap for consumers in need of a car, unable to get out to shop in person. Here are 20 things you probably didn’t know about Cazoo.
1. Cazoo is based in the United Kingdom
According to Techcrunch, Cazoo is a used car sales business that was established in the United Kingdom. The founder of the company is Alex Chesterman, a well-known British entrepreneur, and businessman. Cazoo currently provides services
2. Cazoo’s founder is the CEO
Chesterman established Cazoo after a long line of other successful business endeavors. He is known for building up businesses and then selling them for a significant profit. Before founding Cazoo, he started LoveFilm, which he built up and sold to Amazon, and Zoopla, which is a property sales site. He stepped up to the plate as CEO of Cazoo, assuming command of the business in an executive leadership position.
3. Cazoo has plans to expand
The online car vendor is planning to expand the business from the United Kingdom to other parts of Europe. It has been successful in England with sales that grew by more than 300 percent for 2020. Cazoo’s revenues have nearly reached the $1 billion mark. Sales of used vehicles will be offered in more parts of Europe. Additionally, car subscription services are also in the works as a diversification strategy that will further expand the offerings of the company.
4. Cazoo is on a major fundraising campaign
Cazoo has been on a major fundraising campaign for the past few years. The company has been successful in attracting large investors willing to place their bets on the continued success of the company. Chesterman has had little trouble finding the capital to launch the business with seed funding and further rounds of venture capital funding to build a solid financial foundation for Cazoo. He has led the effort to find major investors to back Cazoo for expansion. His successful track record has instilled confidence in larger investment firms.
5. Cazoo is backed by major investors
Notably, so many big investment firms are putting their money into Cazoo. They view it as a viable business with a high likelihood of continued success and profitability in the years to come. Early investors in Cazoo include Marcho Partners, Mubadala Capital, Senator Investment Group, Pelham Capital, price House Partnership, Counterpoint Global (Morgan Stanley), Altimeter, BlackRock, and others.
6. Cazoo is going public
According to CNBC, Cazoo has plans to go public. A multi billion-dollar SPAC deal is in the works that will allow the British used car company to file its IPO in the United States in a deal that combines it with AJAX I in a $7 billion deal backed by the US-based blank-check firm. Cazoo will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
7. Cazoo will get a new board member
In the new $7 billion deal, the founder of AJAX I will join the board of directors for Cazoo. Daniel Och is the founder of AJAX 1, who joins Cazoo’s board. Also, as a part of the new deal, Alex Chesterman will remain with Cazoo as the CEO, continuing to lead the company through its IPO, and continued expansion throughout Europe.
8. Cazoo is still raising funds
Fundraising for Cazoo is still in process. The company is expected to raise yet more funding from the SPAC in the amount of an $805 million cash trust, along with an additional $800 million from private investors for a total of $1.6 billion in additional funding. This is an exciting new venture that has investors excited about the probabilities for a good return on their investments.
9. Cazoo is a unicorn 7 times over
When a company reaches a valuation of at least $1 billion, it joins the exclusive group called unicorns. After all, is said and done with the recent IPO and new investments pouring in, the expected valuation of Cazoo will be $7 billion. This is seven times the amount required to achieve unicorn status.
10. Cazoo’s IPO is more beneficial for the US than for Britain
Chesterman’s decision to file for Cazoo’s IPO in the United States over London is going to deal somewhat of a blow to the London economic market. The London market has the goal of attracting high-growth tech companies for its stock exchange. Chesterman is taking his company to the American stock exchange instead of going with the exchange in his home country due to the stiffer rules in the London exchange. Perhaps this will make the UK take a longer look at the way they do business and encourage a loosening of its tight restrictions. Chesterman is a businessman who is going to move his company in the direction that will lead to the best possible success and he’s just proven that if it means listing with foreign exchange, that is precisely what he is going to do.
11. Cazoo is disrupting the used car market in the UK
According to Cazoo’s official website, the company is offering a new way for people who live in the United Kingdom to shop for a car. This eliminates the need to take the time to go down to a used car lot in person. The hours of waiting for the paperwork to process for financing are now a thing of the past. All payments are processed with fast and efficient online applications. Many of these processes are now completed more quickly than the old standard methods of filling out forms at the car dealership and waiting hours for a response. Cazoo has the potential to change the way people in the UK and throughout other parts of Europe purchase used cars. There is a tremendous likelihood that this will impact the used car industry in the days to come.
12. Cazoo offers delivery options
When a vehicle is purchased from Cazoo, customers have a choice of how they can receive their vehicles. The first option is to have it delivered directly to their homes. Delivery occurs within 72 hours of the purchase in most cases. If you want your vehicle faster than that, you also have the option of going to one of the customer centers of the company to collect your purchase.
13. Cazoo guarantees each vehicle sold
Consumers are guaranteed that each vehicle sold has been completely reconditioned. Each comes with a guarantee of quality. Every vehicle that is advertised on the website is owned by the company so there are no third parties involved in the transactions. Cazoo offers a 7-day money-back guarantee on every vehicle sold. Consumers also receive a 90-day warranty on each car with 7 days of free driveway insurance and RAC roadside assistance thrown in on the deal. These are policies that consumers appreciate and they help to instill confidence in buying a vehicle online without first taking them for a test drive. If the car is not satisfactory, you still have a week to return it and shop for a different vehicle. Cazoo offers an exceptional consumer protection program. This is one of the factors that is leading to its rampant success.
14. Cazoo made 4 acquisitions
According to Crunchbase, Cazoo has acquired four companies. On February 23, 2021, it acquired Cluno, an online car subscription service that provides rental cars. Cazoo bought Smart Fleet Solutions on February 11, 2021, a company that specializes in vehicle reconditioning and storage. On December 17, 2020, Cazoo acquired Drover, a mobility-as-a-service platform that provides monthly subscriptions for end customers. Cazoo also acquired Imperial Car Supermarkets on July 14, 2020. Imperial Car Supermarkets is a used car supermarket known for providing trustworthy and reliable used cars. These four major acquisitions were a part of the strategy to build the infrastructure of Cazoo to provide more comprehensive services for its customers while expanding the scope of the company.
15. Cazoo relies heavily on technology
Cazoo offers used cars for sale in an online environment which is convenient for users who wish to shop from the convenience of their homes. The business relies heavily on technology to support all of the services and transactions that it is capable of performing. currently, Cazoo uses 13 different technology products and employs the use of 24 different technologies to power its website. Some o these include iPhone/Mobile Compatible, Content Delivery Network, Viewport Meta, and others. This classifies it as a tech-based company.
16. Cazoo is led by an executive team of 10 members
There are less than a dozen executives in charge of the major functions of the unicorn company Cazoo. Currently, the team consists of Alexander Edward Chesterman, founder, and CEO, Paul Whitehead, Chief Commercial Officer, Darren Bentley, Chief Customer Officer, Jonathan Howell, Chief Technology Officer, Piers Stobbs, Chief Data Officer, Fern Wake, Chief of Operations, Stephen Morana, Chief Financial Officer, and Ned Staple, General Counsel and Company Secretary. This is a small but capable team that oversees the daily operations and strategic planning for the firm.
17. Cazoo has a mission to improve lives
According to the company’s official LinkedIn page, Cazoo has established a solid mission to make positive changes in the way that consumers buy used cars. The company is aware that the processes involved in buying and selling cars are laborious and time-consuming. The business is created to transform the processes of buying used cars in a manner that is fully transparent, and convenient. As a part of its mission, Cazoo also aims to provide its customers with peace of mind about the safety of the online buying process with guarantees of satisfaction that makes it easier and more enjoyable to purchase a used car online.
18. Cazoo is only three years old
Cazoo is a company that has seen rapid growth and expansion in the short time that it has been in operation. It was founded by Alex Chesterman in 2018, and it is almost unheard of for a company to rise to unicorn status in such a short amount of time. The company is already positioned to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
19. Cazoo is currently hiring
According to Boards Greenhouse, Cazoo is following through with its rapid expansion plans. We saw evidence of this in the number of new positions that are currently being offered by the company. Cazoo has over 100 new job positions listed. The majority of these positions are being offered in various parts of England’s major cities, along with a few listed in Lisbon, Portugal. It appears that Cazoo is gearing up its workforce to prepare for its massive expansion efforts to spread further throughout the European nations.
20. You will soon be able to trade Cazoo shares
City Index was good enough to provide information on how you can invest in Cazoo. The company plans to complete its initial public offering at some point during the third quarter of 2021. Cazoo will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and it will appear under the ticker symbol CZOO. Listing under the SPAC helps to bypass the red tape involved with the traditional IPO process. Expect the price of Cazoo shares to kick off for $10 per share. Soon, investors will be able to buy and sell Cazoo shares freely.
