Sales target follows monthly records
The used car retailer set a new single-month sales record in each of the first four months of 2026, followed by its best-ever August and September. First-half sales exceeded 36,000 vehicles, up 21% year over year and matching its total for all of 2023.
Car Dealer Magazine reports that Big Motoring World aims to sell more than 70,000 vehicles in 2026, almost twice its 2023 volume.
CEO Laurence Vaughan credited employees' work on operations and customer service for the third-quarter result. He said: "This strong performance in Q3 is testament to the effort and commitment of people at all levels across the business in improving how we operate, with a core focus on providing excellent customer service."
EV growth in the broader market
The retailer's EV sales increase comes alongside growth in the UK's used battery electric vehicle market. In the second quarter of 2026, national transactions reached 110,761, a 67% increase from a year earlier, according to SMMT figures reported by The Independent.
Battery electric vehicles represented a record 5.5% of the UK used car market that quarter, compared with 3.3% a year earlier.
Coventry expansion scheduled for early 2027
Big Motoring World's next location is scheduled to open in Coventry in the first quarter of 2027. The retailer's 12th site will create 100 jobs and put the business within a 60-minute drive of two million people.
According to Car Dealer Magazine, the development occupies an 11-acre brownfield plot on Old Church Road, formerly operated by CarStore and vacant for more than three years. Capacity for more than 550 used vehicles will make it one of the Midlands' largest used car retail sites. Electric vehicles will account for at least 30% of its stock.
The Coventry operation will join the group's RAC Approved Dealer partnership, and its vehicles will be prepared at one of the company's six nationwide preparation centers. Across its existing network, Big Motoring World has more than 10,000 used vehicles available, many of them ready for same-day collection.
Vaughan said: "As we move into the final quarter of the year and prepare for the opening of our new supermarket in Coventry, we're cementing our position as one of the UK's biggest used car retailers and the leading provider of used EVs, providing an unmatched combination of choice, value and quality."
Revenue milestone alongside a wider loss
In the weeks before the third-quarter results, the group disclosed that annual turnover had passed £1 billion for the first time in 2025, Car Dealer Magazine reported.
Accounts for Bapchild Motoring World (Kent) Limited, which trades as Big Motoring World, show revenue of £1.1 billion for the year ended December 2025, up from £859.1 million in 2024. Retail vehicle sales grew 20.1% to 61,599 cars, while average staffing increased from 1,293 to 1,511.
The company nevertheless recorded a £12.48 million pre-tax loss, compared with an £11.84 million loss in 2024. The 2025 figure included £4.07 million in legal costs associated with its dispute with ousted founder Peter Waddell.
The accounts also disclosed a failed bank covenant test at the end of 2025. The bank facility continued on its original terms, and the remaining balance was still due for repayment in November 2026, as originally scheduled.
