There’s perhaps no better way to summarise Mark Roper (pictured)’s first few months in the driving seat of Hagerty UK as managing director than in the words of the man himself, “it has been a bit of a whirlwind”. Since joining the business in November of last year, Roper has helped the classic car insurer pinpoint a new strategic direction to allow the business to realise its inherent purpose – to preserve driving for future generations.
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That is the mission statement of Hagerty, and one that is passionately upheld by its team who understand the inherent role that cars and driving have in making memories, and want to ensure that future generations can continue to make those memories. As MD, Roper’s focus will therefore be on helping the business drive commercial growth and success to fulfil that purpose for customers and members alike.
“To do that, there are two key areas of focus for us,” he said. “Firstly, we are a relatively niche classic car insurer in the UK, and we have to grow our insurance business. That business is the bedrock of our P&L in the UK and is what will enable us to do all the other things we want to achieve.
“But we want to grow our insurance business in a way that is different from many of our competitors – it’s about trying to build a community with our clients, members and more generally with people who are enthusiasts of the car hobby. We want to help them become part of that community through the events, experiences and media content that we’re putting out through multiple platforms.”
By creating that community, Hagerty UK will be front of mind for customers when they make a classic car purchase or their insurance is up for renewal, he said. But growing this community is also integral to the second strand of Roper’s growth strategy – developing multiple touchpoints with automotive enthusiasts. To build its standing, Hagerty UK will be running six events from April through to December 2022.
This is more than the insurer has ever run previously, he said, as in the past Hagerty instead tended to sponsor other people’s events. These experiences will operate under the banner of different themes – from celebrating the ‘unexceptional’ cars that people treasure, to highlighting modern classics. Underpinning all these themes is the ambition of bringing people together and allowing them to experience the Hagerty brand, as well as the expertise and passion of its team.
“People want to be out and exploring their hobbies again,” he said. “Our biggest event is called the Festival of the Unexceptional, which is actually an award-winning event as of last year. And we’ve been inundated by our customers who attended last year’s event as to when we’re releasing the date for it. People are clearly desperate to get out and spend time doing the things they love again after two years of not being able to do so.”
For Roper, whose previous professional credits include time spent with Lloyds Bank, American Express, Aon and Collinson, this role has been a remarkable opportunity to bring together all the multiple strands of his experience to date. So, when he was first approached about joining Hagerty UK and he learnt about what the insurer was looking to achieve, he knew it was the role for him.
He understands the DNA of the business, he said, and how it balances its entrepreneurial spirit with incredible growth potential.
“[Its proposition] is completely unique as well,” he said. “I’m not sure that many of our competitors have really got the credibility to build the brand in the way that we are doing. Look at what we’ve achieved in the US, where we are the largest insurer by far in this space and have also successfully created multiple touchpoints for the customers. And the platform we have created for the membership in that community has real authenticity and credibility to it.”
That authenticity piece is critical to Hagerty’s role in the market, Roper said, as clients in the classic automotive space are knowledgeable, enthusiastic and, above all, highly discerning. Hagerty’s team has been able to set itself apart due to its undeniable enthusiasm for classic cars and motorbikes. This is evidenced by the firm’s Trustpilot ratings as well as the customer testimonials it receives, he said, which more often than not are related as much to Hagerty’s customer service advisors as to its insurance offering.
There’s a lot to be excited about in the near, medium and long-term future of Hagerty UK, Roper said, not least its upcoming events. Making those events a success will be a key driver for him and the team this year. In addition, by this time next year the ambition is to have launched its membership platform - Hagerty Drivers Club - in the UK.
“So, working through the plans of how we go about that - from the value proposition to customers, to the platform that we use to be able to communicate with customers, to how we make sure that we are responding to customer requirements - that’s key on my agenda,” he said.
“And then finally, we are also keen to expand into Europe. I’m actually going out to Germany next month with the president of Hagerty to start to explore opportunities around how we could potentially take Hagerty into one or more countries in Continental Europe as well. So, there are big plans on the horizon.”
