Gosport car dealership wins prestigious award for innovation

Clever Car Collection, located at Basepoint Business Centre, Aerodrome Road, Gosport, won the accolade because founder James Baggott has incorporated Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the operation since its launch in January.

Baggott has been finding out where AI technology can, and can’t, help in the motor trade – and at the 2024 Auto Trader Retailer Awards, Clever Car Collection was handed the Innovation of the Year Award (Under 50 Cars).

It’s not the only success the business has achieved via Auto Trader since its inauguration, having amassed dozens of five-star reviews on the website, and having received a ‘Highly Rated’ ranking for delivering excellent customer service. Customers have been equally complimentary on other feedback sites such as Google Reviews.

Announcing Clever Car Collection’s success at the awards ceremony in London, Rebecca Clark, sales director at Auto Trader, said the innovation category sought to recognise car dealers who have ‘‘successfully implemented bold innovations’’.

She said: ‘‘Our winner has gone all-in on AI, putting it at the centre of their business and demonstrating to the industry the huge potential this exciting new technology offers automotive retailing. ‘

‘What started out as an experiment has now become a fully-fledged business with our judges stating that ‘the learning journey this retailer has been on is absolutely fascinating. The insights derived from their AI-driven approach are hugely valuable to all.’‘‘

Congratulations on your success! We’re all very excited to see where this project will go and watch the journey unfold.’’

Baggott, who was recently joined at Clever Car Collection by business partner Joe Wallington, said he was ‘‘shocked and delighted’’ to win the award.

He added: ‘‘We’ve tried to use AI as much as possible. It’s worked in some places and failed miserably in others. There are certainly a lot of things it can help with, but as an experiment to show the motor trade what can be done, it’s been fascinating.

‘‘What started out as a project is now a very real business with plenty of satisfied customers. I am honoured to have been handed this award.’’

Car dealers named in the Auto Trader Retailer Awards are in the top one per cent of the 14,000 car dealers using the leading marketplace. The innovation award was decided independently from Auto Trader by judges from organisations including John Lewis, Ocado, Linkedin and MoneySuperMarket.

This year, around 1,500 of Auto Trader’s top-performing retailer partners were shortlisted to just 88 finalists split across 11 different categories, of which just 30 were crowned winners.As well as running Clever Car Collection, Baggott is the founder of Gosport-based Baize Group, which publishes Car Dealer Magazine, the multi-award-winning automotive trade title.