Arno Keyser

Senior South African motor-retail operator with deep OEM dealership, pre-owned, bakkie/LCV, fleet, appraisal and wholesale experience. Ford and Motus heritage underpins almost a decade of pre-owned leadership, while current Volkswagen MasterCars exposure adds contemporary OEM, pricing and stock-turn discipline. Proven in stock acquisition, market-led pricing, ageing control, recon, gross-profit protection, sales-team leadership and customer outcomes.

Combines dealership-floor judgement with a BBA and technology-enabled market intelligence.

MasterCars / Pre-Owned Manager at Claremont Volkswagen (2026-06 – Present)

• Lead stock acquisition, appraisal, pricing and stock-mix decisions across MasterCars and complementary pre-owned inventory.
• Drive market-led pricing, ageing control, recon flow and preparation standards to improve stock turn and profitability.
• Lead sales performance and coordinate F&I, workshop, admin and marketing around customer and commercial outcomes.
• Apply structured market intelligence and AI-assisted vehicle evaluation to support acquisition discipline and margin protection.

Operations Manager at Cape Bakkie Centre / Auto Investments Group (2026-01 – 2026-06)

• Led multi-site used-vehicle operations across Cape Bakkie Centre, Jetour Parow Pre-Owned and the Springbok satellite branch.
• Managed sales performance across 10 salespeople and coordinated recon, admin, workshop, parts and sourcing channels.
• Supported an environment targeting approximately 80 pre-owned retail units per month and built a vetted 25-person sourcing network.

General Sales Manager at Rola Motor Group (2025-03 – 2026-01)

• Oversaw Luxury Cars, Value Cars and Rola Cars divisions; led a team of 17 across sales, recon and administration.
• Drove sales strategy, stock planning, monthly performance, budgets, cost control and high-value customer relationships.

Pre-Owned Sales Manager at Motus Ford Cape Town / Culemborg (2016-06 – 2025-03)

• Directed procurement and retail of approximately 30-40 vehicles per month with disciplined appraisal, pricing, ageing and recon control.
• Led sales performance, trade-ins, finance and value-added-product opportunities; stood in as New Car Manager for three months.
• Recognised with the Ford Motor Company Chairman's Award - Best Used Car Sales Manager 2017.

Used Vehicle Sales Manager at Imperial Select Stellenbosch (2015-06 – 2016-06)

• Turned the department from single-digit sales to approximately 30 units per month through stronger stock and sales discipline.

Director & Co-Owner at ACE Wholesale (Pty) Ltd (2014-03 – 2015-06)

• Directed sourcing, wholesale trading, dealer relationships and commercial performance.

National Appraisal & Regional Wholesale Manager at Auto Pedigree - National Appraisal Office / Regional Wholesale (2013-02 – 2014-03)

• Appraised trade-ins for 67 branches nationally and managed more than 1,000 appraisals per month.
• Achieved a 343-unit wholesale month; liquidated approximately R400 million in stock and supported de-fleeting exceeding R600 million.

Branch Manager at Imperial Auto Auctions / Auto Pedigree (2012-02 – 2013-02)

• Managed wholesale, group procurement, auction-centre planning and branch performance; sold approximately 1,000 wholesale units.

Branch Manager / Pre-Owned Manager at Porters Cape Town / Imperial Ford (2009-09 – 2012-02)

• Built a six-profit-centre department that became the most profitable operation within Imperial Ford's eight-dealership network.
• Generated approximately R2.7 million wholesale profit over two years and exceeded retail financial budget by approximately R1.3 million.

New Car Sales Executive - Barloworld Armstrong Ford | New & Used Sales Executive - Barloworld Armstrong Tygervalley | Branch Manager - Auto Warehouse / Porters PDI | Director - Super Cars | Business Partner - Supercars 2 Dealers at Multiple Employers (1997 – 2009)

Earlier career positions spanning 1997-2009

BBA in Marketing Management – STADIO Higher Education (2025)

Higher National Certificate – HTS Bellville (1994)