BIZ BUZZ: CATS in the bag

So the cat is truly out of the bag now that it has been officially announced that the CATS Group of Companies will be bringing in a new majority partner to help it take the next step in its corporate evolution.

As for that new majority owner—United Kingdom-based Inchcape Plc.—CATS is now officially in the bag after yesterday’s ceremonies at the company’s sprawling showroom in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.

CATS is, of course, the Philippine distributor for Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Jaguar Land Rover, Harley-Davidson and a few other upscale brands.

CATS founder Felix Ang, who started the firm as a car accessories, tires and service center business (hence “CATS”) in 1989, said that after over 30 years in the luxury car business, they have finally found the right partner to drive the venture forward.

Biz Buzz sources have intimated that Ang really had no intention of selling his business in the first place, but that Inchcape was looking to secure a foothold in the country’s booming auto industry and offered him a “compelling price.”

How compelling? Let’s just say it was compelling enough to make him overcome the sentimental hurdle of selling something he built from the ground up and grew through good economic times and bad.

During yesterday’s ceremonies, CATS chair Greg Yu revealed that Ang’s son, Frankie, would continue as COO—“chief operating owner, but no longer the ‘child of owner,’” he kidded—of the partnership venture.

Ang and Yu will continue to serve in the company as board members, representing their 40-percent equity interest in the new partnership.

This will be especially important for Inchcape, which will need expert local hands to help them navigate the rough and tumble world of the Philippine automobile business, especially with competition really heating up in the luxury segment (and expected to heat up further with the entry of new upscale brands soon).

And for those who are unfamiliar with Inchcape, Yu pointed out the company was no slouch when it came to the auto business.

The company has been listed on the London Stock Exchange since 1958 and is the world’s leading independent multibrand global automotive distributor with over 100 years of automotive experience, operating in more than 40 international locations over six continents with an impressive network of over 1,000 distribution and retail locations and with 20,000 employees worldwide.

“Their revenues in 2021 reached 7.6 billion pounds,” he said. “Friends, that is more than P510 billion.”

And what will Ang do henceforth now that he will no longer be involved in the daily nitty-gritty of running a sprawling luxury car distribution business? We hear he’ll be spending a lot of time on his super yacht in the coming months. Not a bad deal.

—Daxim L. Lucas