At Canadian auto dealer, we spend a lot of time reporting on how the business is changing, how the products and services available to dealers; the job descriptions and elements of the store are evolving. There’s no question that with the advances in technology and changing consumer expectations, auto retailing today is undergoing a fundamental shift in the way business is conducted.
We often imagine how the changes we see in progress now will look in 10 years, 20 years, and beyond. We believe it’s a useful exercise to project beyond what we know, and into what can only be guessed at. And we thought it would be worth including you in this exercise. So, starting in this issue we’ve launched our first ever fiction series. It takes some of the paths the industry is already heading on and extends them 20 years.
By imagining how things could look, well in advance of where they are now, we think we can discuss scenarios and possible outcomes that will help inform us of where we are at present. We can start some investigations and conversations, and we can gain feedback that will advance the discussions we are having today.
Do we know whether the picture we are going to paint over the course of this series in Canadian auto dealer is really how auto retailing will look like two decades into the future? Not sure. Maybe we’ll be right in some parts and wrong in others.
Let’s challenge our assumptions and imaginations. Tell us whether you think we’re right or wrong. Tell us what your own feelings are about what the industry will look like 20 years into the future and whether it will fundamentally differ from the picture we’re creating with this series.
As we expand our fictional universe further in subsequent issues, we also want you to take the time to stop and revisit past instalments. Let’s compare our visions and ask questions. How will vehicle servicing be performed in the future? How will consumers buy vehicles? What will it mean to be a person working in the automotive retail space?
These are all things that many of us talk about on a daily basis in a fact-based environment, so why not expand that to include fiction as well. The auto industry is built on dreams, concepts and ideas, so let’s expand and go beyond what we know, to what might actually be. I think you’ll agree that it’s a fun and interesting sandbox in which to play.
You’ll find our first installment posted for your reading pleasure. Go online to read the story and share your thoughts and comments with our managing editor, Huw Evans. (You will find a link at the bottom of the Dealership 2030 story).
