Not only did the group take the top podium spot for the much sought-after Audi Group of the year title, but Alpine Audi Umhlanga was also awarded the overall Audi Dealer of the Year . The group’s Audi Pinetown dealership took the third podium place in the Dealer of the Year category.

Add to this a number of other podium places in different sub-categories and it is easy to understand why there are smiles all-around at the Alpine group,” says Ravi Naidoo, Dealer Principal and also a Director and Shareholder.

Audi Centre Umhlanga’s other achievements include New Car Sales Manager of the Year, 1^st place (Cuan Mansour), New Car Sales Executive 1^st place (Ravi Iyer), Pre-owned Sales Manager of the Year, 2^nd place (Chris Walter-Girout), New Vehicle Sales Executive, 3^rd place (Ashley Naicker) and Parts Manager of the Year, 4th place (Avish Nandalal).

Alpine Audi Pinetown, under the leadership of Ken Pearsall, DP and also a Director and Shareholder, scooped up a number of accolades above their overall 3^rd spot as Dealer of the Year. These include the Pre-owned Vehicle Sales Manager of the Year, 1^st place (Andrew Laas) and New Vehicle Sales Manager of the Year, 3^rd place (Daniel Wexler).

“We are ecstatic about the top recognition we as a group received with both of Alpine’s Audi dealerships excelling. Naturally, the Dealer of the Year award bestowed upon Audi Umhlanga is heartwarming to say the least and is the result of a huge effort we put in over the years to reach all the KPAs needed to come out on top.

“Both our dealerships have been in the top five dealerships of the country consistently, and we boast many podium positions over the years. Now the hard work has paid off, and we took the top spot as a dealership and a group with all the various other top accolades we managed to win,” Ravi tells Dealerfloor.

To what does he contribute this success, both at dealership and group level? “A stable, well-trained and well-paid workforce is the key. Staff turnover is at a minimum, which means time is not spent on retraining and basic training. Constant training of the staff is, however, immensely important and a huge investment in our people to give us a competitive edge.

“Staff all know their responsibilities, what the boundaries are, our goals and objectives and the direction we will follow to reach them,” Ravi says. “It is important for our sales teams to understand the market. On the one hand is the customer’s needs, the pipeline and processes to get the vehicles. On the other hand, also an understanding of the economy, political landscape and competitive factors that might have an influence on business conditions.”

He says a big part of their success is having the correct stock at the right time and knowing your market, customers and the above-mentioned factors play a crucial part here. “As shareholders in the business, we also consistently plough back in the business to ensure sustainability. When business conditions are good, everyone benefits, and our philosophy is to ensure our people earn well even when the economy is tight,” Ravi says.