Pinewood to acquire South Africa dealer management operations

(Sharecast News) - Pinewood Technologies announced an agreement to acquire key assets of its South African dealer management operations from entities within the Motify Group on Monday, for �2.5m in cash, strengthening its presence across southern Africa ahead of further international expansion.

The London-listed firm, formerly known as Pendragon, said the deal, set to complete on 1 August, would give it full control over the sales and customer service functions for its Pinewood Dealer Management System (DMS) across seven southern Africa markets, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Eswatini, Namibia and Mauritius.

It said it would assume all relevant customer contracts and transfer key employees to maintain service continuity.

Pinewood said the acquisition would deliver immediate commercial benefits, and was expected to contribute between �0.5m and �0.7m in additional annual EBITDA.

"This acquisition is consistent with our strategy to expand our global operations, and it will enhance our go-to-market capabilities and deepen our customer relationships in an important growth market," said chief executive officer Bill Berman.

"Our customer base in Southern Africa has grown across multiple franchise partners in recent years and this move reflects our confidence that we can drive further growth in the region in the years ahead."

Pinewood said it has been active in the southern African market since 2009, with around 300 dealer partnerships and over 30 OEM relationships now established.

The move aligned with its broader strategy of expanding in core international markets, including Asia-Pacific and northern and central Europe.

At 1149 BST, shares in Pinewood Technologies Group were up 2.01% at 466.18p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.