Online car retailer Cazoo acquires UK-based car subscription platform Drover

The 'cars-as-a-service' category continues to be hot like the sun.

Cazoo, the high-flying UK car e-tailer, this morning announced that it has acquired Drover, a car subscription platform also based in the UK, for an undisclosed sum.

Cazoo says the deal will help it expand across Europe, as market consolidation has kicked off in the sector already (French used-car marketplace Rezoocar was just acquired by Société Générale).

Drover raised £20.5 million in funding from a host of investors last summer, a Series B round that was later topped up with another £2.25 million by Shell Ventures.

Buying the company gives Cazoo the ability to offer its customers the option to purchase, finance or now 'subscribe' to any of its cars. It was planning to roll out its own monthly subscription service, the launch of which will now be moved to the first half of 2021.

Drover was founded in 2016 and currently has 100 staff across London, Lisbon, Paris and Bucharest, according to the press release.

Felix Leuschner, the founder and chief exec of Drover, said: "I am very proud of what we have achieved with Drover in such short time. We have built a great team and developed a sizeable and loyal subscriber base with strong revenues. Alex and the team at Cazoo have a very clear strategy and vision and I am very much looking forward to accelerating the growth of car subscriptions as part of Cazoo and to continuing to develop the business beyond the UK."

Alex Chesterman OBE, founder and CEO of Cazoo, said: "The acquisition of Drover will enable Cazoo to rapidly expand into car subscriptions and give our customers the option of purchasing their next car outright, financing it over a multi-year period or subscribing for a shorter, more flexible period. I am looking forward to welcoming Felix and his team to Cazoo and continuing to deliver the most innovative and best options for consumers across the UK looking for their next car."