Our Business Areas & the markets
The primary driving forces in the aftermarket for cars and light trucks is the number of cars on the roads and their mileage. Global trends and new technology contribute to a changed need among the customers, creating new growth opportunities. We are convinced that the combination of differentiated businesses, as well as a strong shared purchasing function enable us to meet our customers needs with a broad offering, and thus we create good conditions for profitable growth.
Market with potential
MEKO operates in the car aftermarket and is market leader in northern Europe with a presence in eight markets around the Baltic Sea, with a total of 75 million people and 35 million cars.
|
|
Denmark |
Estonia |
Finland |
Latvia |
Lithuania |
Norway |
Poland |
Sweden |
|
Population, millions |
5.9 |
1.4 |
5.6 |
1.9 |
2.9 |
5.5 |
36.8 |
10.5 |
|
GDP growth, % |
1.4 |
2.4 |
1.0 |
2.6 |
2.7 |
1.5 |
2.3 |
0.6 |
|
Number of cars, millions |
2.8 |
0.8 |
3.7 |
0.8 |
1.7 |
2.9 |
26.5 |
5.0 |
|
Average distance driven, km |
15.5 |
9.5 |
13.2 |
12.5 |
13.0 |
11.1 |
16.5 |
11.5 |
|
Cars >5 years, % |
74.0 |
89.5 |
86.0 |
92.3 |
93.1 |
76.6 |
91.6 |
81.4 |
|
Purely electric cars, % |
7.1 |
0.4* |
2.6 |
0.5 |
0.68 |
20.6* |
0.1* |
5.9 |
Source: Latest available data collected in February 2024 from Wolk, IMF, Statistics Denmark, Statistics Norway, Finnish Information Centre of Automobile Sector, Polish Investment & Trade Agency, Statistics Poland, Statistics Sweden, Statistics Estonia, Republic of Estonia Transport Administration, National Statistical System of Latvia, Regitra.
*Information on fully electric cars (%) for Estonia, Norway and Poland is in whole or in part based on data from 2022 as data is yet to be released for 2023
MEKO's five business areas
MEKO consists of northern Europe’s leading spare parts distributors; FTZ, Inter-Team, Koivunen, MECA, Mekonomen and Sørensen og Balchen with operation in Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Sweden. The markets are divided into five Business Areas; Denmark, Finland, Poland/the Baltics, Sweden/Norway och Sørensen og Balchen (Norway), read more about each business area below.
Business Area Denmark
Main brand: FTZ
FTZ is the leading car part distributor in the Danish market with B2B sales of spare parts, consumables and tools to customer groups such as workshops, car dealers and other wholesalers. The company has a wide national network of regional warehouses and branches in Denmark, including Faeroe Islands, and a central warehouse in Odense. The broad geographic network enables rapid deliveries of products to the workshops.
Business Area Finland
Main brands: Koivunen, Fixus and Mekonomen
Koivunen is the leading supplier of car spare parts and related services in Finland. Koivunen's distribution channels include concept-affiliated and independent workshops and dealers, industrial customers and exports.
Business Area Poland/the Baltics
Main brands: Inter-Team & Balti Autoosad
Inter-Team is a well-established car part distributor in the Polish automotive aftermarket with sales of spare parts, consumables and tools to workshops, car dealers, retailers and other wholesalers.
Balti Autoosad operates in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, with a central warehouse and sales to a wide network of B2B customers.
Business Area Sweden/Norway
Main brands: MECA & Mekonomen
The Business Area have a highly automated central warehouse outside of Stockholm and a wide network of branches and workshops; MECA, Mekonomen, Speedy och MekoPartner.
MECA and Mekonomen are leading concepts in the Swedish and Norwegian aftermarket for spare parts, tools and workshop equipment. Sales are primarily made to B2B customers, though Mekonomen offer spare parts and accessories also to consumers through branches and e-commerce.
Business Area Sørensen og Balchen (Norway)
Main brands: Sørensen og Balchen & BilXtra
Sørensen og Balchen sells spare parts and car accessories and operates the branch and workshop concept BilXtra in the Norwegian market. Sørensen og Balchen is the leading actor in Norway for car accessories for consumers through branches and e-commerce.
Economies of scale and coordination
To utilize the Group’s size advantages in the market, the Group works through some coordination between the business areas, for example within the purchasing area. In addition, there are a number of other companies within the Group operated in order to broaden and develop the core business.
Synergies through acquisitions
One trend in the European aftermarket is to take advantage of economies of scale through the acquisition of other actors. Partly to leverage synergy effects and partly to have a greater possibility of investing in future customer offerings. MEKO’s acquisition of Sørensen og Balchen (2011), MECA (2012), FTZ and Inter-Team (2018) and Koivunen (2022) are successful examples of this. Different countries have made varying progress in this consolidation. The Nordic market is more consolidated than the Polish market.
Market shares*
28% market share in Denmark
25% market share in Finland
25% market share in Norway
4% market share in Poland
8% market share in the Baltics
15% market share in Sweden
*Proportion of spare part sales to workshops
Global trends create new growth opportunities
As a rule, the need for maintenance and repair does not increase until the cars reach an age of five years. At the same time, new automotive technology and other global trends are creating new needs and expectations among the customers, including when it comes to digitalization, sustainability and availability. The need for new solutions and services, regardless of the age of the cars, provides an opportunity for existing actors to broaden and integrate their offers or for new actors to enter the market.
For us, It is important to have a strong understanding of how the market and our customers’ needs change and how we are affected by it. By making use of these driving forces, we create long-term and sustainable growth.
Digitalization of the customer journey creates integrated solutions, transparency and simplicity for both workshops and car owners. At the same time, it creates major opportunities for more efficient logistics through the shortening of value chains and optimization of logistics flows.
Analysis of data provides better understanding of the needs of workshops and car owners. By drawing conclusions from data, we can automate the flows and create tailor-made customer offerings.
Carpools, leasing and other kinds of car ownership are creating new customer needs and new business opportunities. For example, solutions for simplifying carpooling or the
In order to reduce the climate impact from the transport sector, there is currently a shift from fossil-fueled vehicles to electric and hybrid cars. New technology demands new expertise in the workshops and more flexible business models to create profitability as a result of fewer spare parts.
Modern technical equipment, which among other things helps the drivers to park and navigate, requires new expertise and calibration equipment in the workshops. An important new business to compensate for traditional cars with internal combustion engines in all likelihood decreasing in number in the future.
Data from connected cars can be used to develop new solutions that make life easier for drivers. This includes services that simplify the planning and maintenance of the cars and, in the longer term, remote maintenance.
