On December 9, 2025, at the BRIDGE Summit, the Careta booth was honored to invite Mr. Preem, representative of Service My Car — a leading automotive service platform in the UAE — to the stage for an exclusive interview. This interview focused on topics such as the development of the UAE automotive after-sales market, digital transformation, regional expansion, and the evolution of the Middle East automotive service ecosystem. The full interview transcript is as follows:
Q1: Can you briefly introduce Service My Car and its positioning in the region?
Mr. Preem: Service My Car is the UAE’s top automotive service platform under Bahawan International Group (which inherits the legacy of Oman’s Bahawan Group). The company offers integrated services including vehicle maintenance, repair, and logistics support. Its parent group has a footprint across more than eight countries and businesses spanning vehicle sales, car rental, vehicle modification, and multi-brand after-sales services.
Q2: How do you assess the current UAE after-sales market — size, growth and main trends?
Mr. Preem: The UAE after-sales market is sizable and steadily growing. According to 2024 figures, the market is estimated at about USD 7 billion, with a projected CAGR of roughly 3%–3.5%, and is expected to reach USD 8.5–10 billion by 2030. High vehicle ownership (around 450 cars per 1,000 people) keeps demand strong. A major trend is that vehicles increasingly move to multi-brand workshops after warranty expiration, as customers prioritize convenience, transparency, and clear service information over single-brand exclusivity.
Q3: From the multi-brand workshop perspective, what are the industry’s main pain points?
Mr. Preem: Key pain points include delays in parts procurement, long customer waiting times, inconsistent pricing and repair quality, and limited customer trust. These structural issues persist even as the market grows, and they especially impact post-warranty customers who are shifting toward online and door-to-door service models.
Q4: How have customer behaviors evolved in recent years, and how has Service My Car responded?
Mr. Preem: Customer behavior has shifted through three stages:
Traditional era (pre-2016): customers preferred in-person visits to workshops.
Early digital era (2016–2021): customers began comparing prices online, though service quality varied.
Modern era (2021–present): customers prioritize time-saving, genuine parts, professional certifications, and transparent processes.
Service My Car’s responses include providing digital inspection reports (photos/videos), one-to-one follow-up calls, a 12-month repair warranty, and partnerships with highly qualified workshops. The platform also offers door-to-door vehicle collection and delivery (supported by a fleet of 15 flatbed trucks) and end-to-end transport tracking as part of an integrated service.
Q5: Which areas require the largest technological or operational investment, and how is efficiency ensured?
Mr. Preem: Three core investment areas are highlighted:
IT infrastructure — an in-house operating system running on AWS manages the full customer journey and complies with PCI DSS for data security.
Logistics — investment in a fleet (15 flatbed trucks) enables reliable door-to-door collection and delivery.
Marketing — strategic digital marketing is necessary to manage high customer acquisition costs in a competitive market. These investments, combined with standardized partner audits and quality controls, underpin operational efficiency.
Q6: What are Service My Car’s market expansion plans in the region?
Mr. Preem: Service My Car plans staged regional expansion: launching in Saudi Arabia (targeted for 2026) — drawn by Vision 2030’s non-oil investment opportunities — and entering Oman in 2027. The company will leverage existing UAE partner networks that already operate in Saudi Arabia, keep core services (door-to-door collection, paperless communications) unchanged, and make only minor logistics adaptations to local geographies.
Q7: How does Service My Car handle luxury vehicles and ensure premium service quality?
Mr. Preem: Service My Car already services premium brands such as Rolls-Royce, LamborghiniUAE LamborghiniBahrain LamborghiniKSA LamborghiniKuwait LamborghiniOman LamborghiniQatar Lamborghini, and PorscheUAE PorscheBahrain PorscheEgypt PorscheKSA PorscheOman PorscheQatar PorscheKuwait Porsche. Partner workshops are equipped with OEM-certified scan tools, a two-layer quality control process is in place for premium vehicles, and OEM parts are guaranteed for luxury repairs, ensuring top-tier service standards.
Q8: What are the company’s future priorities and product roadmaps?
Mr. Preem: Top priorities include EV readiness — engaging with EV experts to expand electric vehicle service capabilities — and developing a B2B fleet management platform that consolidates maintenance costs, service history, and approval workflows on a single system for fleet operators.
Q9: How do you see collaboration with Cartea and what areas would you like to deepen?
Mr. Preem: Service My Car recognizes Cartea’s role as a trusted content and marketing partner in the Middle East. The company seeks deeper collaboration across the full lifecycle of automotive services — combining Cartea’s strong media reach (TikTok, Instagram, YouTube) and content capabilities with Service My Car’s operational service strengths to enhance customer reach, education, and conversion.
Q10: What is Cartea’s value proposition to automotive brands in the region?
Mr. Preem: As a leading automotive content and marketing platform in the Middle East, Cartea builds a content-driven marketing loop that supports brands from awareness to conversion. At the BRIDGE Summit, Cartea released the “3S Framework” white paper (Social Spark, Search Trust, Sale Certainty) to provide localized, actionable marketing guidance for brands and dealers.
This interview centers on Service My Car’s role as a leading UAE automotive service platform (Bahawan International Group), covering after-sales market dynamics, customer behavior evolution, operational strategy, regional expansion, luxury and EV service readiness, and collaboration with Cartea. The company emphasizes technology, logistics, and marketing investments, aims for rapid but controlled regional growth (Saudi Arabia 2026, Oman 2027), and prioritizes partnerships — notably with Cartea — to deliver a seamless, trust-based mobility service ecosystem in the Middle East.
