BMW has confirmed that it will be transitioning all its dealers in Europe into a unified agency-style, direct-to-customer sales model. Under the new approach, dealers, now known as retail partners, will no longer hold inventory of cars. As there is only one fixed price, customers won't need to compare discounts between dealers.

Customers can enjoy full transparency on the currently available inventory nationwide and place their orders online. The retail partners will earn a fixed commission.

The transition will begin with the Group’s MINI brand, starting on 1-January 2024 in Italy, Poland and Sweden. Other European countries will follow later, with the BMW brand scheduled to transition in 2026.

BMW’s statement to the press mentions that the agency model will include nearly-new BMW Group cars, suggesting that pre-registered units, or ex-demo models, as well as the Group’s internal company car fleet, will also be offered for sale in this manner.

“This transition to direct sales with retail partners is a key milestone in the realignment of our Sales division, which has been ongoing since 2020. The new sales model will enable us to communicate directly with our customers and give the BMW Group a direct customer interface,” said Pieter Nota, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG and responsible for Customer, Brand, Sales. “The aim of our new sales model is very clearly to increase customer satisfaction and offer the best premium customer experience in the industry.”

Sales chief Nota stated that 100 percent of the company’s MINI retail partners are on-board. “That’s clear confirmation of our plans to move forward together,” he said.

Mercedes-Benz made a similar transition earlier this year in the UK, Germany, even Malaysia.