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Cazoo is a British automotive online marketplace and classified advertising business based in Richmond, London. It was founded in 2018 and launched a used car marketplace in December 2019. Though based in the UK, it briefly expanded into European markets between 2021 and 2022. After shuttering a network of physical showrooms, the company went into administration in 2024, with its assets divided among three buyers. The Cazoo brand was relaunched by Motors, a used car marketplace.
 | |
| Company type | Private Company |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Founder | Alex Chesterman |
| Headquarters | , United Kingdom |
Key people | |
| Owner | o3 Industries and Novum Capital |
Number of employees | 250 |
| Website | cazoo |
Cazoo Group
Cazoo was founded in 2018 by British internet entrepreneur Alex Chesterman. It launched an online marketplace for used cars in December 2019, which became its primary business.[1]
It is based in the UK but listed on the New York Stock Exchange following a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, led by hedge fund manager Dan Och in August 2021. As of its listing the company had a valuation of US$8 billion. It subsequently lost over 97% of its market value, causing Alex Chesterman to step down as CEO in January 2023.[2]
In 2021 Cazoo had expanded internationally, launching used car marketplaces in Germany and France, and in early 2022 expanded briefly into Italy and Spain.[3] After announcing redundancies in the UK in June 2022, in September, Cazoo announced it would abandon its business in the European Union, closing its operations in France, Germany, Italy and Spain and making all 750 of its EU employees redundant, leaving only its UK operation in business.[4]
UK redundancies were announced in March 2023 when 15 out of 22 showrooms were closed.[5] A year later, in March 2024, the company stopped buying and selling cars and closed its remaining showrooms, aiming to become purely an online market place; the move meant 728 redundancies.
On 21 May 2024, Cazoo went into administration putting 208 remaining jobs at risk of redundancy.[6] Cazoo's wholesale business was bought by G3; Constellation Automotive Group also acquired some Cazoo assets; and used-car platform Motors was reported in June 2024 to be buying Cazoo's brand and marketplace business.[7]
Under Motors
Motors announced the acquisition of Cazoo on 28 June 2024[8] and relaunched the Cazoo brand under a new app in July 2024. Cazoo's website was temporarily redirected to Motors while a new website on the company's backend was constructed.[9]
Cazoo sponsored the Welsh Rugby Union,[10] a number of annual horse races in Epsom and Doncaster,[11] cricket tournament The Hundred,[12] various events managed by the World Snooker Tour,[13] the Professional Darts Corporation,[14] and the PGA European Tour.[15]
Consequent on the company's announced retrenchment to the UK market in September 2022, Cazoo's sponsorships of European football clubs for the 2022–23 season, including Everton F.C., Aston Villa, Olympique de Marseille, SC Freiburg, Valencia CF, Lille OSC, Bologna FC and Real Sociedad were being wound down.[16]
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