How to become a car dealer in Nigeria, Car dealerships in Nigeria let’s say are simply having to buy automobiles from overseas at a cheap rate to sell at a profit in Nigeria.
The buying source often varies, the most common way being auction/bidding sites. How to become a car dealer in Nigeria note there is a Cotonou market in the Republic of Benin, where cars from all over the world are imported and sold at a very cheap price.
In the dealership venture, both fairly used and new cars are sought after, all you have to do is weigh the demand for each specific car before buying them to resell.
Tips on How to Become a Car Dealer in Nigeria
Get a Car Dealership License
To become a car dealer in Nigeria ideally, first, you need to apply for and pay the ‘car dealership License’ fee. It certifies you as an authenticated car dealer which comes with numerous advantages.
With that you can become a certain company’s franchise, i.e. you will sell their car models.
There are bidding sites that accept only certified dealers to their site, where you as a car dealer will come across overwhelming deals. Lastly, you avoid being prosecuted by the law.
The process of registration and other vital information pertaining to the license can be found in the road safety offices in your respective regions.
Purchase Your Cars
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria you may purchase your cars at the auction and bidding sites open to you as a certified dealer. Cars are more affordable at auctions compared to other sites, or you could prepare for a trip to the Benin Republic.
Buy and drive the car all the way to Lagos which currently is the legal route to bring in cars, through the ports of Lagos.
You could hire a driver to deliver the car to your destination. How to become a car dealer in Nigeria when you buy cars from a foreign country, it is usually through a phone call or completely online as if you are buying on Amazon.
You will be asked to input your shipping address, in this case, it will be the port because of customs clearance.
List and Highlight the Cars Online
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria there are hundreds of popular websites where you can list and highlight the vehicles in your inventory as classified adverts.
Listing them on sites like jiji.com and nairaland etc. Should be a smart move because this kind of site has a lot of reach.
It is incumbent to list your cars on car sales sites where other dealers list their cars at a price they want and wait for purchasing customers.
Although the websites provide form fields you can fill in case they don’t make filling some of the fields compulsory here are a few of the ones you must fill when posting online.
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria add your location customers prefer to buy from where the cars are located to escape paying exorbitant fees for car delivery.
Always add quality pictures of the car.
Write a short description of the vehicle, and point out its model, mileage, any defects, and any custom-made additions.
Specify whether it’s new or old and any other detail you feel is necessary. How to become a car dealer in Nigeria your contact information, perhaps it is the most important.
Get a Plot of Land and Garage
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria your garage where you can simply keep the cars won’t be enough. You will need a showroom or a piece of land to display your cars in the open.
This method is more popular among car dealers in Nigeria. The garage might have to be built due to shops lacking adequate and appropriate space and facilities to house a car.
The garage building could be made of steel with a high-rise ceiling as in a steel warehouse building. Also, it might be situated in a different location from the actual place where your car dealer shop is.
Maybe a short distance drive. The garage should have good security measures in place to avoid incidents or theft.
List of Required Items
This business really depends on your capital. How to become a car dealer in Nigeria you can start with as little as 1-2 cars to as many as 30-50 cars.
Even when it is a franchise, the size of the business is different depending on the deal that was made with the company.
Employ a Number of Staff
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria if you are running a big place you might need as much help as you can get for your labor such as driving the cars in and out of the garage and parking them, cleaning the cars, and helping with sales.
On occasions even repairs of the vehicles. Although if the place is small two of you might be okay for the job. When hiring, consider someone with experience as this will serve you well.
Profit Margin
For normal saloon cars, after customs clearance and all the small fees that come with bringing a car into the country, you will make up to N500,000.
How to become a car dealer in Nigeria, note that SUVs attract more as you could make up to 1 million Naira or more from selling a single car.
Which we could surmise the profit margin at about 30%, but as Nigeria uses the rising and falling of the dollar to calculate the import tax, the margin could change drastically within a short period.
