The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A Bahamian auto dealer said yesterday that it had seen a 20-25 per cent “ramp-up” in sales from a pre-Value-Added Tax (VAT) rush, describing it as the “feast before the famine” in anticipation of a slow down for the 2015 first half.

Ben Albury, Bahamas Bus & Truck’s general manager, told Tribune Business that survival in the auto industry would come down to who was best prepared to ‘ride out’ the introduction of VAT.

“Right now, business has been ramping up. I’m seeing about a 20-25 per cent increase in business in terms of people trying to beat the cut-off date,” he told Tribune Business.

“We have been pushing hard with our sales and promotions to try and get as much of that business as we can. I think that a lot of people have felt the urgency.”

Mr Albury said he was expecting the sales trend to continue towards the end of the year. “As we do in this country with a lot of things, I’m expecting it to pick up in the final days,” he added.

“A lot of people may be clinging on to the last minute. I expect this week and weekend to be really busy. We are seeing that the banks right now are being very aggressive and accommodating.

“I think they are also being aggressive right now freeing up of that liquidity, which has been a hurtful thing in our industry, where a lot of the banks have been reluctant to lend money. I feel as if some of that may have been relaxed. I see that interest rates have been falling quite a bit.”

Mr Albury added that there was a flip side to the pre-VAT sales rush. “What scares me with that is what I have to look forward to next year,” he explained.

“As a business person I’m trying to secure every sale that I can in anticipation that the first six months of next year will be very slow. We know that there is kind of a feast before the famine comes.

“Hopefully we will ride it out. I think you will see some of the smaller companies be in position where they may not be able to survive.  That’s where it’s going to come to who is best prepared to ride it out,” said Mr Albury.

“I think it’s definitely going to put a strain on a lot of businesses. This is a business that requires a lot of cash flow to operate as we know, because of the fact that we are going to be paying 7.5 per cent at the border in anticipation of recovering that after a sale.

“Common sense will tell you that that is going to eat up more of my cash flow. We have expressed to the Government and are still pleading with them, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association (BMDA).

“Some of the things are still lingering questions, and some things that are small concessions that can be made that will work better for the entire industry.”