The three things we discovered at the NADA show 2025

At the end of January, a small team from Auto Trader made it through a once-in-a-hundred-year snowstorm in New Orleans to get to the NADA show 2025.

Our teams attended this annual event to meet with our partners and speak with retailers, consultancies and companies from across the globe, all to gain an understanding of the global marketplace. Crucially, we aim to understand how other markets are developing and what they are doing to overcome the challenges that our market also faces.

So, what did our team find from their time at NADA show 2025?

Markets are moving to a new normal

One of the key themes our teams heard from the floor at NADA show 2025 was how many markets are adapting to a new normal.

Like our own domestic market, markets from across the globe have enjoyed something of a boon as a result of the pandemic impacting supply levels and causing a rise in demand on the used market.

However, the subsequent economic challenges have led to new car sales struggling across the globe, with consumer demand for new cars remaining flat in many geographies.

With new car sales a challenge, many retailers are looking at how they can optimise their existing processes to get the most out of their used car and aftersales businesses, where there remains plenty of opportunity.

This was reflected by conversations our team had with a multitude of consultancies. When asked what areas they were being asked to consult on by retailers, all unanimously stated that retailers were looking into the balances of profitability on used cars and balancing costs, overhead absorption rates and thinking about how much is sold in the service lane.

Plenty of choices in tech, but choosing the right solution crucial

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the NADA show floor was dominated by tech solutions, with AI the buzzword of the show.

There were plenty of AI solutions on display at the show, including an AI car wash. But beyond the hype, there were plenty of discussions about how retailers need to look at how AI can enhance existing processes and produce the same or better results from less work, effort and costs.

More broadly, retailers should look at how tech can contribute to the goals they are looking to achieve. We heard from many retailers that margins are more of a challenge than ever. But we also heard how technology can help ease this challenge.

Many retailers were looking at how to use data to streamline the decision-making process by better-connecting decision-makers from different disciplines across the business.

We also heard how many retailers were using technology, such as AI, to streamline the process of bringing cars to market by using tools to more efficiently create adverts and manage vehicle preparation.

By adopting more technology, these retailers are freeing up their people to do what they do best and add the personal touch to the retail process.

Technology and data are vital tools in enabling more efficient decision-making by enabling decision-makers from across businesses. After all, whilst technology is an ever increasingly important tool for retailers, people still buy from people.

It’s time to get back to basics

With so many challenges in the global automotive industry, the NADA show focussed on how retailers can drive profitability and success in the months and years to come. Technology can of course be a tool to aid retailers as we’ve just described, but retailers will need to more and focus on getting back to basics.

World-renowned industry consultant Glenn Mercer took to the NADA show stage to share his research into how the US market can adapt its processes and measures to excel at the basics and drive profitability. Glenn’s research, commissioned by NADA established that there are areas in used car, F&I and aftersales that can be streamlined and enhanced to drive profitability in US retailers, and we’re excited to announce that we have commissioned Glenn to mirror his research here in the UK market.

Glenn has spoken to over 80 franchise retailers here in the UK and utilised our data to uncover what the new normal is for retail in the UK and how a move back to basics is the key to growth.

We’ll reveal his work findings to you in an all-new report launching in late February.

For more details into what we found on our visit to the NADA show 2025 check out our recent webinar which also includes our latest UK market data and insights.