Bosch enjoying continued growth in Ireland
Kevin Kelly, Robert Bosch sales director for Europe UK and Republic of Ireland, and the current president of the UK’s Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF), sat down with CV Workshop Magazine during this year’s Automechanika Birmingham to discuss the growth of the Irish market, the ‘Right to Repair’ and the current industry skills shortage.
Kelly, who was born in England to Irish parents, has more than 35 years of experience in both original equipment and the automotive aftermarket enjoying various roles with tier one suppliers. He shared how Ireland has quickly become a key market for Bosch over the last number of years, even outperforming Great Britain in recent months.
He said: “We made a strategic decision about seven years ago to be serious about Ireland, as we felt we were not servicing Irish customers to the right level and missing a great opportunity there. We restructured our team and put a key account management structure in place for Ireland and spent more time looking into potential partners and customers, which proved to be very valuable.
“While that support was initially coming from the UK, we then made the decision to put a sales guy on the ground in Ireland to look after both the Bosch Car Service network and distribution partners. That went so well for us that we now have two full-time people on the island of Ireland (Rob Glendinning and Willian Maher). This sends the right message to the distribution partners because we have someone there locally that can respond quickly with the backing of our head office in Denham.
“Rob and William are both from the background of workshops which is really important for Bosch, because when you’re talking to motor factors, garages or technicians, I think you need to have walked-the-walk in their industry. You can’t train experience in a garage, so that’s proved invaluable to us.”
Since appointing Rob and William, Kelly explained how Bosch more than doubled its turnover in the Irish market alongside revamping the Bosch Car Service network, which now comprises more than 30 workshops. Bosch plans to increase this number to 50 Irish workshops during 2026.
While Bosch already has a diagnostic training centre in Dublin, operated by MKW Training, Kelly said the company is planning to open a training centre in Northern Ireland in order to offer the full aftermarket portfolio of parts, diagnostic equipment training across the island.
Discussing the current skills shortage within the automotive industry, Kelly said the perception around a career as a vehicle technician needs to change. “It’s not just about fixing cars – it’s a career,” he said. “In Germany for example, a motor technician is seen as a vocation. Our role at Bosch is to change the perception in the UK and Ireland about the automotive sector and get more people engaged in seriously considering this sector as a career.”
Kelly also called on other industry bodies to step up in making the sector much more approachable and attractive for younger people, especially the 15-17-year-old cohort who need to be properly informed of just how broad the automotive sector is. “I really want to federations to step up and use the power of their member brands to collectively get that message into schools and colleges and indeed their parents,” Kelly said.
Kelly concluded by mentioning the improved relationship Bosch and the IAAF has formed with the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI), in campaigning for the ‘Right to Repair’ to ensure a level playing field for all repair workshops across the UK and Ireland. “Consumer choice is really important, and there’s no reason why an independent garage can’t do exactly the same job as a main dealer,” he said. “A lot of our customers, such as CD Group, LKQ and AAG, operate in both the UK and Ireland so it is the same message and the same support, and we really want to work with SIMI to drive the Right to Repair message.”