ecurie25 are a Supercar club based in London, with a fleet of over 30 cars and 4 branches nationwide. Here we interview the CEO Chirag Shah.

What attracted you to ecurie25 as a business?

Well, to give you bit of background on myself – I’m an automotive engineer, worked in the industry for various manufacturers, including Land Rover, then did an MBA and worked as a consultant for a bit. The next step was I set up a Dot Com selling auto car parts, and as that progressed I got more interested in the software side of things. I sold that in 2007, and wanted to get back into cars again. People asked me why I was getting into cars, and I told them I’ve always been into cars – they should be asking why I got into software!

I’ve always thought that the ‘pay as you go’ sector is a fast growing market, and is a trend which is here to stay, especially with cars. And obviously it’s much sexier at the supercar end of the market…  I was offered the chance to invest in ecurie25 after inquiring about becoming a member, and after a while a deal was struck. For me if it’s something I think I would use, then I believe in it more  – and I really did believe that I would use an ecurie25 membership. I still believe that there are far more people in this country who don’t know that this type of business exists, who would use it, and it’s my job to tap into that market.

Why and how do you think ecurie25 has managed to survive, and even prosper in this economic downturn, when almost all of the other supercar clubs have failed?

I think the simple answer to that is our Vehicle Owners Plan. The fact that we source cars from members as well as buying our own means that we can keep our fleet fresh and members happy in a time when the banks simply aren’t lending. Simple fact is – if you don’t have the latest cars, you die. And that has happened unfortunately to the other clubs. The VOP has introduced these shades of grey between the black and white of those who have supercars and wouldn’t join a club, and those who don’t and would join. You can use your car as a way of paying for your membership, or to supplement it, it’s very open. It’s not a club just for one type of person, it’s just a great place to be if you like supercars, and want to share the experience with other likeminded people.

What are your plans for ecurie25’s future?

I make no secret of the fact that I want to take ecurie25 international. The type of members we attract are generally cash rich and time poor, so for those who are on planes, in other countries it makes sense for us to offer them the chance to use their membership wherever they are. Supercar clubs are here to stay, there’s something which makes it attractive to the psyche, so once we come out of recession we need to offer our service to the world. And if someone can emerge as a worldwide leader in this area, as we plan to – it’s good for everyone. The idea is that someone local thinks “why would I join XYZ club down the road, when I could join ecurie25 down the other road and have access to worldwide clubs?”.

We also intend to continue promoting our member events, so it’s not just the cars that would appeal to potential members. If you have a couple of days in Dubai, you may not want or be able to spend a day driving a Lamborghini, but you certainly would enjoy an exclusive party one night with similar enthusiasts, and that’s what we can provide. Just look on the calendar and see what’s available.

It must be satisfying  knowing that 4yrs ago, people were saying “Why should I join ecurie25 when I could join P1”, whereas now the roles are reversed as you’ve emerged as the stable club?

Well actually it’s a double edged sword, as what’s come along with all these other clubs folding is the fact that people are extremely nervous. I suffer more from potential customer’s anxiety than I’d say I gain from being the market leader. I’d still prefer to have competitors at the end of the day, and growing the sector.  But it’s still taken a long time to try and rebuild that confidence, and it does make me nervous that some of the new clubs won’t survive as it’s massively damaging to us if they go under.

I think another reason we have prospered is by offering franchises. It meant we could grow faster, and it offers massive economies of scale, from simple things like advertising, up to the obvious areas of buying cars. We order more cars, which brings down lead times, and it means we can have a broader range of cars as well.

What new cars are ecurie25 getting in this year and which are you excited about?

When looking at which cars to buy I focus very hard on what I call the ‘must haves’, and I think we live or die as a club by our ability to get these cars in. For us this year those cars are:

• Ferrari 599 – not necessarily a new car, but we felt we just had to have one on the fleet. The missing piece in our portfolio if you will.
• Audi R8 Spyder – we deliberately missed out the V10 coupe as it didn’t offer enough difference from the V8, and given that they Spyder was coming out we focussed on that.
• Ferrari 458 – this is the big one in terms of new car launches. I’ve probably spent 20% of my time over the last 12 months making absolutely sure that we have one of the first RHD cars in the UK on our fleet. And we’ve bought half a dozen other cars to ingratiate us with the powers that be in Ferrari just to make sure this happens! As it turns out we’re actually getting two in July – a Nero/Black one in London and a Rosso/Crema one in Leeds.
• Mercedes SLS AMG – definitely going to be a popular car, but it may split opinion within the members which is good from our perspective.
• Fisker Karma – to me it’s just the most stunning car, a proper 4 door electric sports saloon. The Tesla was a novelty, and this should take it to the next level.

Obviously for 2011 the must have car is the McLaren MP4-12C, and we’re going to make sure we have one of the very first cars available, no matter what it takes. Frankly it’s a great time to be in a supercar club as there are just so many new cars being released, it’s a job in itself just picking the toys.

What’s your favourite car on the fleet at the moment?

I think to drive, I’d say the LP560/4 coupe is just so brilliantly engineered, so well planted, raw etc. To use every day I’d have to go with the Ferrari California. It’s the only car my wife will drive, and we can get the kids in the back and a decent bag in the boot. As a daily ownership prospect its unbeatable in my eyes. Having said that, we’re getting a Maserati Grancabrio, and it’ll be really interesting to see how that shapes up. I’m a sucker for convertible as well so maybe it’ll take my top slot.

Ecurie25 can be found here, and provide best of the Best with some of our prizes, so why not give them a visit!

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