TrueCar to Take Its New Approach to Buying and Selling Cars to Wall Street
TrueCar recently announced that it filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for an IPO of its common stock. According to the registration statement, TrueCar is seeking to raise $125 million through its IPO for “general corporate purposes, including working capital, operating expenses and capital expenditures.” TrueCar’s future includes “additional products and services to improve the car-buying and car-ownership experience.”
As described in the registration statement, TrueCar’s “mission is to transform the car-buying experience for consumers and the way that dealers attract customers and sell cars.” Specifically, TrueCar explains that it benefits “consumers by providing information related to what others have paid for a make and model of car in their area and, where available, estimated prices for that make and model of car, which we refer to as upfront pricing information, from our network of TrueCar Certified Dealers.”
As noted by our own Jeff Soble in November, “car buyers are armed with more information before they walk onto a lot than ever before.” TrueCar is one of several websites that provides customers with detailed information, including a vehicle’s invoice and other data regarding the sale of similar cars. TrueCar’s IPO, led by Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, demonstrates both the value of information for the consumer and the dealer and how the car buying experience is changing dramatically. Moreover, TrueCar’s significant revenue growth – from $38 million in 2010 to $134 million in 2013 – shows the dramatic shift in how cars are bought and sold.
Mr. Soble posed the following question and answer just six months ago: “At what point will people be buying cars without ever visiting a lot? It might be sooner than we think.”
Who knows, maybe TrueCar, armed with an additional $125 million in its coffers, may be just the company to bring about such change.