The Inchcape lighthouse lies 11 miles out to sea off the East coast of Arbroath, Scotland. It stands on one of the most treacherous submerged reefs in the northern hemisphere and is one of the seven wonders of the Industrial Age.

Thanks to the pioneering spirit of a young engineer, Robert Stevenson, who dreamed of building the impossible, a lighthouse was planned on the 'Rock' that had claimed over 100 lives.

Despite many obstacles, Stevenson never lost faith in his plan, and by February 1811, the lighthouse on Inchcape Rock was finished. It is the oldest, sea-standing lighthouse in the world and today, still saves lives.

100 years later, inspired by this pioneering spirit, Inchcape's founder James Lyle MacKay, when awarded a title for his services to industry became the first 'Baron Inchcape of Strathnaver' and so named the company that he led.

The Inchcape Group can trace its origins back to 1847 when two Scotsmen met in Calcutta. William Mackinnon and Robert Mackenzie, two merchants from Campbeltown, formed a general merchanting partnership, Mackinnon Mackenzie & Company (MMC).

Realising the benefits of combining trading with ocean transport, the business expanded and diversified. As a result of their pioneering spirit, a host new companies and partnerships were formed and global trade routes opened to lay the foundations for a unique business empire that spanned every continent.

James Lyle Mackay, 1st Earl of Inchcape (11 September 1852–23 May 1932) was one of the founding fathers of the Inchcape complex of companies that would eventually become Inchcape plc.

Mackay was the second son of James Mackay of and his wife, Deborah Lyle. His career in India started In 1874 when he went to join Mackinnon, Mackenzie & Co in Calcutta. By 1914 was the sole surviving senior partner of the company that had laid the foundations of the Inchcape Group. Over his life, Mackay built upon these foundations to create an unrivalled trading house that would become one of the world's greatest businesses.

Mackay was largely responsible for solving India's currency problems and for the adoption of the Gold Standard, he was knighted by King George V for his services to industry and nation in 1911, becoming Baron Inchcape and later, Earl of Inchcape. Mackay served as Vice-President of the Suez Canal Company, was Chairman of P&O and a Director of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company and the National Provincial Bank.

In 1871, at the age of 19, James Mackay left Scotland to explore career opportunities further afield and in 1874, he was offered a post in the Calcutta offices of Mackinnon Mackenzie.

The image to the right is Mackay’s letter of Engagement from the Mackinnon Mackenzie Company.

Mackay’s progress through the firm was impressive. Before long he was made a partner and by the late 1880s he was a powerful figure, both within and outside the partnership.

The picture shows the First Earl at the Colonial Conference 1907 (centre, middle row)with many important figures including a young Winston Churchill (far left, middle row)

When in 1911 James Mackay was created a Baron in recognition of his work on the Viceroy’s Council in India, he took the title Baron Inchcape of Strathnaver in commemoration of the Inchcape Rock Lighthouse, 12 miles offshore from his birthplace. The lighthouse had made a deep impression on him during his childhood as a symbol of unyielding persistence and self-belief and represented the power of courage, perseverance and teamwork.

Although the Third Earl had nominally headed up the family’s portfolio of businesses since 1939 when his father died, he spent the war away from head office on active service. Still only 27 when he returned from the war, he found a successful Group of companies, but knew that the Inchcape complex would have to change to thrive in the new post-war world.

During his time at the helm of Inchcape, he was instrumental in re-organising, re-focusing and strengthening the company, and drove the successfully listing of Inchcape on the London Stock Exchange in 1958, taking the first step away from the idea of Inchcape as a family run business.

In October 1958, a new holding company, IGD Ltd, was formed with a nominal capital of £2 and the launch Prospectus offered 25 per cent of the new Group’s equity to the public.

This momentous change of direction for Inchcape was well received in the City of London and by the business media and by May the following year the share price of the new Inchcape Group had risen by a quarter.

In September 1982 Sir David Orr, the retiring Chairman of the Anglo-Dutch foods-to-detergents giant Unilever, joined the Inchcape board. Three months later he took over as Chairman.

His appointment marked the start of a new era for the Group; the essential bridge between the traditional, paternalistic approach to a more professional model.

Peter Johnson joined the Group in 1995 to run and rationalise Inchcape’s motor retail business, became Group CEO in 1999 and then Chairman in 2006.

46-year-old Frenchman André Lacroix, with his vast experience of consumer-focused business, was looking for a new challenge when he joined Inchcape in 2005 as Chief Executive Designate.

Having worked with leading brands before, he recognised the opportunity of a unique enterprise positioned as a distributor and retailer in probably the biggest markets in the world.

And he brought with him a real focus on customer service - now at the core of Inchcape’s strategy - a passion for operational excellence and an appetite for growth into new markets with strong potential.

On 22nd February 2006, Inchcape announced the acquisition of Keystar Motors in south east Queensland, Australia.

Whilst Inchcape already had an established retail presence in Melbourne and Sydney, the acquisition of Keystar marked the Group’s first entry into Brisbane.

Read the full announcement.

On 4th May 2006, Inchcape announced the acquisition of Lind Automotive Group in the UK, expanding the company’s UK retail presence

This sizeable acquisition enhanced our geographic coverage in the South and East of England.

Read the full announcement.

In December 2006, December 2006 we announced the public offer for the acquisition of European Motor Holdings plc (EMH). This acquisitions was completed in January 2007, allowing Inchcape to take a major step forward in creating a unique force in the UK automotive retail market.

Read the full announcement.

In October 2006, the Customer 1st strategy was announced.

At Inchcape, we have a clear Vision, Strategy and Core Purpose.

Our vision is to be ‘the world’s most customer-centric automotive retail group’ which means that we place our customers at the very heart of our business decisions.

Our strategy has two interconnected drivers ‘Strengthen and Expand’ - strengthening our presence in our existing markets through superior customer-centric operational processes funding our expansion into high-growth emerging markets.

Our core purpose is ‘to create the ultimate customer experience for our brand partners’ and this is the cornerstone of our long-standing relationships with the world’s leading motor manufacturers

Read more about our strategy

On 30th August 2006, Inchcape announced expansion into Russia with the acquisition of a majority stake in the Axel Car Toyota and Lexus retail and service business in St Petersburg.

Read the full announcement.

We place strong emphasis on the quality of our customer service and in 2007 we launched the Customer 1st initiative as part of the Inchcape Advantage programme to deliver outstanding customer service ‘every time, every day, everywhere’. Following extensive consumer research, we developed and implemented Customer 1st processes, training and systems throughout our retail centres. In particular, this has allowed local management to set targets for each centre based on customer satisfaction measured through Net Promoter Score (NPS) and sales funnel management analysis.

Inchcape announced the official opening of its first retail centre based in China in August 2008. Located in Shaoxing 140 miles from Shanghai, the retail outlet for the sales and servicing of Toyota passenger cars was formally opened by the Mayor of Shaoxing.

The Shaoxing Toyota retail centre was built in an unprecedented 100 days and is an impressive 10400 M2 site on 2.5 acres featuring 33 work bays.

In May 2007, Inchcape acquired a 67% stake in the automotive retail businesses of UAB Vitvela in Lithuania. The company is Inchcape’s third party Mazda retailer in Lithuania. Its main business is based in the capital, Vilnius, with additional dealerships in the regional cities of Kaunas and Klaipeda. The Company also represents Ford, Hyundai and Mitsubishi.

Read the full announcement.

In June 2007, Inchcape announced acquisition of Baltic Motors Corporation and SIA BM Auto. Baltic Motors represents Ford, BMW and Land Rover in Latvia, with its main business based in the Latvian capital, Riga, with additional dealerships in the regional cities of Liepaja and Ventspils.

Read the full announcement.

In October 2004, the Group confirmed it had acquired a 75.1% shareholding in the retail businesses of OOO Orgtekhstroy, an Audi retail business in St Petersburg, and OOO Concord, a Peugeot retail business from its existing St Petersburg Joint Venture partner, Olimp Group.

Read the full announcement.

On 25th March 2008, Inchcape announced its acquisition of the remaining 24% stake in its St Petersburg business from Olimp Group.

The acquisition gave Inchcape a significant presence in St Petersburg, the second largest city in Russia, and was in line with the Group’s strategy to develop a scale position in Russia.

Read the full announcement.

In April 2008, Inchcape plc announced its acquisition of an initial 75.1 per cent shareholding in Musa Motors Group, a top ten car retailer in Russia and a top 3 retailer of premium brands with a strong customer focus. Its portfolio includes BMW, MINI, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volvo, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Rolls-Royce and Renault.

Read the full announcement.

On 22nd May 2008 Inchcape announced another landmark in it growth in to the Chinese market with the official opening of its wholly owned Lexus Retail Centre in Shaoxing, China.

The Inchcape Lexus 4S retail centre in Shaoxing, occupies 9,570 square metres, is fully equipped with the latest state of the art facilities and technology and operates to a high standard in terms of vehicle sales, spare parts and aftersales service. It sits alongside Inchcape’s Toyota retail centre which opened last year.

Read the full announcement.

The global crisis struck in late 2008. Banks failed, including some of the largest and best-known names in the world. Every stock market around the globe suffered dramatic losses. National economies on every continent went into sharp reverse, all the more harrowing because it followed the most consistent period of sustained growth in history.

Inchcape responded swiftly to the global downturn to make its business even sharper, more effective and more efficient by focusing on five key priorities - a mix of cash and commercial activities.

Read more information about the top Five Priorities in the online Annual Report 2009.

To strengthen the balance sheet further, action was taken alongside the five operating priorities. With no certainty in how far market demand could fall, it was agreed to cancel the final ordinary dividend for 2008 and to consider a Rights Issue.

Led by then Group Finance Director Barbara Richmond, the company assessed the prospect of weak global market performance and challenging conditions through 2009. It concluded that raising new equity was the right course of action to protect shareholder interests, reduce debt and improve financial headroom. A Rights Issue was announced in March 2009.

Read the full announcement.

On March 9th, 2010 Inchcape announced its Preliminary Results for the year ended 31 December 2009.

Despite the challenging trading conditions the Company faced over 2009, Inchcape delivered yet another resilient financial performance, demonstrating the strengths of our unique business model, the success of our Top Five Priorities and the tremendous spirit of Inchcape people across the world.

Read the full announcement.

On 29th July, Inchcape announced a strong set of Group financial results for the first half of 2010.

The Group delivered a good growth in sales, which were up by over 11% in the first half of the year and, thanks to Inchcape’s unique business model and continued focus on keeping costs down, a very strong increase in profit before tax, which was up by over 76%.

Read the full announcement.