Roadster is a consumer-driven e-commerce solution for car dealerships and has charged itself with the mission of making the process of car buying and selling better for the parties involved. The digital platform, based in Palo Alto provides dealers with tools to sell new and previously owned vehicles.
According to a filing by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), retail automotive technology company – CDK Global Inc. has acquired Roadster for $360 million. Roadster is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of CDK Group Inc. after the all-cash deal.
Roadster was founded in 2013 and has evolved from the business model the company started with. When the company started, its sales platform hosted the inventory of dealers on the site and handled the entire sales process with end-buyers. The business model with which Roadster operates works more directly with dealerships by providing its digital retail tools directly to these businesses, and this is done through what the company calls ‘Express’ products.
With these tools, businesses have been able to transcend into a more sophisticated era and have been able to serve customers (who make most of their purchases online) better and more efficiently.
In a statement by the CEO and President of CDJ Global Inc. – Brian Krzanich, he said that “consumers have shown they are increasingly willing to purchase big ticket items online, and this trend has quickly accelerated during their pandemic. To meet their expectations, the automotive industry requires integrations of the right technology, data and infrastructure to better connect its online and in-store experiences”.
In another statement by Andy Moss; the founder and CEO of Roadster he said that “automotive retailing is extremely complex, and the best way to create a truly frictionless, end-to-end buying experience is to fully integrate our technology with the back-end systems that power dealership sales, finances and operations, regardless of provider”
CDK Global Inc. is a leading provider of integrated data and technology solutions to automotive industry and is based in Illinois. The company is known for providing digital products that makes the vehicle process easy and stress-free.
The acquisition of Roadster will connect CDK Global Inc. to dealer back-end-systems that will allow a seamless end-to-end sales process thrive.
