Halfords Group plc, a UK-based provider of Motoring and Cycling products and services, received a $3m investment from Bridgestone.
Bridgestone has acquired a 5% stake in Halford’s automotive Software as a service (SaaS) service, Avayler, valuing the business that was launched in July 2021, at $60.5m. In addition, a commercial agreement will allow Bridgestone to leverage Avayler’s products in retail stores and mobile applications.
The Avayler SaaS solution was developed in-house by Halfords to manage automotive services across its expansive garage network and increasing number of mobile vans. It offers an integrated solution that allows automotive companies operating in multiple locations to develop competitive edge by delivering a vastly superior customer experience.
The Avayler platform streamlines customer bookings – online, over the phone, and in-store – and job execution inside the garage, while its mobile capability uses algorithms to instantly calculate the available customer time slots according to the nearest van location and parts availability.
The platform uses dynamic pricing to value those slots accurately. Automotive service providers can calculate the cheapest and quickest routes to a customer; maximise colleague productivity on the job; give details of traffic on the road; and provide a colleague with detailed checklists to ensure a safe and consistent service is provided. Customers can even track the location and ETA of their service delivery.
This Bridgestone investment in Avayler comes after a period of rapid growth. Its first customer was American Tire Distributors Inc., one of the largest independent suppliers of tyres to the replacement tyre market in North America. Since then, Avayler has won a number of significant contracts with operators around the globe, including Tirebuyer in the U.S. and Mobivia in Central Europe.
Led by Graham Stapleton, Chief Executive Officer, Halfords is a provider of motoring and cycling services and products. It operates 393 Halfords stores, 2 Performance Cycling stores (trading as Tredz and Giant), 643 garages (trading as Halfords Autocentres, McConechy’s, Universal, National Tyres and Lodge Tyre) and 264 mobile service vans (trading as Halfords Mobile Expert, Tyres on the Drive and National), 479 commercial vans and 5 HME Cycling vans. Customers can also shop at halfords.com and tredz.co.uk for pick up at their local store or direct home delivery, as well as booking garage services online at halfords.com.
FinSMEs
02/11/2023