Merlin Moves Up A Gear!Wednesday July 30th saw double the action with double the auction at Merlin! The new auction will run in a similar manner except now the vehicles will be divided into two auction lanes running simultaneously. In the existing auction hall, we will run through fi nance and ex-fl eet stock and all trade, retail and “no reserve” vehicles will run through the new second lane.

We are delighted the new 2-lane auction system was welcomed with great enthusiasm as traders and private buyers alike revelled in the excitement. Over 300 vehicles ran though the fi rst two lanes and the auction fi nished in record time with 200 successful sales. Merlin O’Reilly, CEO of the Motor Group commented, “We hold a reputation for being the leading auction company in Ireland. Our new two-lane auction is just another step in maintaining our position as the most innovative auction company in Ireland. It is imperative to always stay one step ahead in order to succeed.”

The idea for the two lanes arose because most buyers are interested in a particular type of vehicle and have a predefi ned budget. This new system means sellers are showcasing their vehicles to a specifi c, targeted group of buyers and in turn buyers are watching an auction that contains only vehicles fi tting their requirements. The other main benefi t to the two lanes is that there is twice the selection of vehicles in half the time. Since the launch of the new system the auction has been running much smoother from both a business and customer perspective. It has also seen an increased volume of both cars and customers, traders are also enjoying the shorter auction because it gives them more time for their retail sales.

Merlin Car Auctions

M7 Motor Park, Junction 10,Naas, Co. Kildare.T. 045 988 700

‣ Merlin Moves Up A Gear

‣ Mini Boom Finally Arrives

‣ A Special Celebration

‣ In With The Old, Out With The New

‣ Customers Reap The Rewards

“The Ultimate Auction Experience”Volume 2 September 2008

Merlin Car AuctionsThe Ultimate Auction Experience

Wednesday 7pm & Saturday 11am www.merlincarauctions.ieM7 Motor Park @ Junction 10 Naas Road, Naas, Co. Kildare. PH: 045 988 700

Merlin Car Auctions

Norman Colfer & David Kehoe, Ireland’s premier auctioneers

New car sales jumped in July as motorists took advantage of the introduction of lower VRT taxes for more environmentally friendly vehicles. New fi gures issued recently by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) show 16,386 new cars were sold last month, compared to 13,150 in July 2007. The fi gures represent an increase of 24.61%.

Falling sales in May and June were as a result of consumers holding off on their car purchases until the introduction of the new tax rules in July. There is evidence that the new VRT and road tax systems that had been designed to encourage people to buycleaner cars, are actually working as planned.

On the used car front, we have seen a signifi cant rise as motor dealers are beginning to see a slow but steady increase in used car sales versus the fi rst half of 2008. At present, it is defi nitely a buyers market especially at Merlin Car Auctions where traders and dealers alike can take advantage of the continuous increase in the levels of repossessions and fl eet cars for sale, which are in turn, presenting great value for buyers.

Our new twin lane initiative, we hope will in turn facilitate this demand, whilst offering dealers a wider variety of cars and vans under the same roof in half the time.

A Special CelebrationNorman Colfer, one of Ireland’s most famous auctioneers and a pinnacle of the entire industry celebrated his 80th birthday on July 19th. Norman has been at the helm of Merlin Car Auctions since its inception in 1974. Now 34 years on Norman still wields the gavel and has been responsible for an astounding 1 million vehicle sales at auction. Besides vehicle auctioneering Norman has auctioned across several industries, the most notable being Goffs and Thos. Adams in Blackrock, which he still does today.

To celebrate Norman’s history with Merlin and his love of auctioneering we saw it fi tting to hold a special auction in his honour. The auction hosted over 200 vehicles including fi nance repossessions, no reserve vehicles and 15 beautiful classic cars to mark Norman’s very special occassion. Some of the classic cars

included a 1974 Rolls Royce and a 1984 Bentley drop top coupe, which was actually the car Norman’s birthday cake was driven in on. The entire event was a massive success with over one hundred cars sold by Norman himself and after the auction the celebrations continued into the wee hours of the morning.

It was brilliant to see all the traders, new and old, joining in on the special celebrations and ensuring Norman had a memorable night. Michael O’Reilly added a touch of sentiment to the occasion with a tribute speech to Norman which also took a trip down memory lane to the times when the auction was in its infant stages. Another highlight of the event was the RTE fi lm crew that followed Norman for the day as part of the Capital D programme which will air on RTE 1 in early September.

“The Ultimate Auction Experience”

Merlin Car AuctionsThe Ultimate Auction Experience

Wednesday 7pm & Saturday 11am www.merlincarauctions.ieM7 Motor Park @ Junction 10 Naas Road, Naas, Co. Kildare. PH: 045 988 700

Mini Boom Finally Arrives

WE ARE PROUD TO SELL VEHICLES ON BEHALF OF THE FOLLOWING CLIENTS

In With The Old, Out With The New!The long anticipated launch of the Merlin Car Swap took place on August 13th. The service is the fi rst of its kind in not only Ireland but also Europe. Merlin Car Swap means auction customers can now trade in their vehicle against any purchase at Merlin Car Auctions. This may sound like the age-old “trade-in” process seen in every retail garage across the country but it is the fi rst time this concept will be seen in the auction industry.

The process works similar to that in a retail garage, the customer comes in and has their vehicle valued and is then given a “Merlin Cheque” for the value of it. This “cheque” can then be used against the purchase of any vehicle at Merlin. So if a customer is trading up, they will pay the difference but if they are trading down in value, they will be refunded the difference. The beauty of it is that one, they don’t have to be without their car until they collect their new vehicle and two, if when we sell on the trade in and it makes more than what it was valued at, Merlin will give you a cheque for the difference! Managing Director David Byrne commented “The idea of giving our customers the difference if their trade in makes more than what it was valued at is simply a good will gesture, so any apprehension for fi rst time users of the auctions is eliminated and customers are also guaranteed the best value for their trade in. Car Swap means both buyers and sellers now have a more complete offering from the auction and this is something we always work towards.”

The process is so easy and convenient and customers won’t fi nd a better cost of change anywhere in Ireland. Considering the current economic climate, there may be a large number of people trading down but also a large number of new faces at the auction who are looking for the best possible value for money and where better to fi nd that than at Merlin Car Auctions!

The loyalty programme which launched with huge success in Merlin Motor City, Ireland’s largest car supermarket, back in February was extended to the auctions in July. The programme, christened “Merlin Rewards”, takes a step forward and differentiates itself from the thousands of loyalty programmes that have gone before. How you might ask? Well, rather the usual mundane offers that disguise themselves as “loyalty cards”, we’ve decided to give our customers something different, a loyalty card that would allow them to use it outside the domains of Merlin. This new loyalty card will allow both traders and private buyers avail of discounts from various other companies as well as within Merlin. And probably the most notable aspect of this programme is that it is evolving, new companies are joining all the time and the deals customers are being offered are constantly changing. We understand that in this challenging industry, it is the customer who is king. It was last year that Merlin O’ Reilly decided he wanted to do something more, something that would allow his customers reap the benefi ts of being a Merlin customer all year round. It was from this the Merlin Rewards Programme was launched. We have partnered with numerous other companies to offer our customers exclusive discounts from many different retailers, including Allianz insurance, Advanced Pitstop, the Irish School of Motoring, Cassidy Travel, Mount Wolseley Hotel and Fort Lucan.

The list of companies joining forces with us is growing at a ferocious rate and will soon include more travel and entertainment providers and various other retail stores. Joanne Cranley, the company’s HR and Marketing Manager said, “In order to launch the card, it made sense to secure motor related companies fi rst. Now that the programme is off the ground the variety of discounts our customers will be able to avail of will be increasing on a continuous basis and we have numerous exciting new companies about to get on board.”

“The Ultimate Auction Experience”

Merlin Car AuctionsThe Ultimate Auction Experience

Wednesday 7pm & Saturday 11am www.merlincarauctions.ieM7 Motor Park @ Junction 10 Naas Road, Naas, Co. Kildare. PH: 045 988 700

Buy Your New Car At Trade PriceTrading Up Or Down, We Accept All Trade-in’s

Thousands Of Cars To Choose FromNo Hassle, No Haggle, Just A Straight Swap!

Log onto www.merlincarauctions.ie or call our Sales Team on 045 988 700Customers Reap The Rewards

lane auction with over 500 cars for sale every week. Lane 1 is fi nance repossessions and ex-fl eet vehicles,lane 2 is dealer part-exchange, private entries and ‘NO RESERVE’ vehicles.

BELOW ARE THE DATES OF OUR FORTHCOMING AUCTIONS

Merlin Car AuctionsThe Ultimate Auction Experience

Wednesday 7pm & Saturday 11am www.merlincarauctions.ieM7 Motor Park @ Junction 10 Naas Road, Naas, Co. Kildare. PH: 045 988 700

Wednesday 3RD7pm

Wednesday 1ST7pm

Wednesday 17TH7pm

Wednesday

15TH7pm

Wednesday

29TH7pm

Saturday

6TH11am

Saturday 4TH11am

Saturday 20TH

11am

Saturday

18TH11am

Wednesday 10TH

7pm

Wednesday

8TH7pm

Wednesday 24TH

7pm

Wednesday

22ND7pm

Saturday

13TH11am

Saturday 11TH11am

Saturday 27TH

11am

Saturday

25TH11am

We are proud to sell vehicles on behalf of the following clients

keep yourself up to date with all the latest industry news on our new blog page. www.merlincarauctions.ie