Lavish playthings or absolute necessities.
Whether we're rich or poor, we're united in our love of cars.
The passion and the following for these is immense, isn't it?
But persuading the nation to part with its cash...
I think they'll get to a million pounds.
..is no mean feat.
If you don't do the deal now, it might not be here after.
Two car salesmen from opposite ends of the market
are about to trade places.
One sells some of the most prestigious cars in the world
to the super-rich.
These are in excess of £2 million today for one in that condition.
The other punts reliable run-arounds to those on a budget.
Diesel, it's got alloys, bang on the money.
For seven working days,
they'll leave everything they know behind,
swapping the slick showroom...
It's like something from Star Trek or Star Wars.
Just need a lightsaber for this and you'll be all right.
..for the crowded car lot.
It's my first day here, so I'm still learning the ropes.
The first thing I thought when I walked over is
I actually don't even know what he's standing next to.
Can they top each other's targets?
I'm in a Ferrari California, in London, with a cool guy, whoo!
I don't think he's adapting to our type of client is the problem.
And what will they learn when their worlds collide?
How did we get on? Agh!
What happens here, people need transport,
and he's not giving it to them.
By the end of the week, half of Bridgend will be on bloody foot!
London.
Home to more billionaires...
..than any other city on earth.
It's where the super-rich work, play and shop.
And when they're in the market for a second-hand car...
they come to south-west London.
This showroom houses some of the most sought-after cars in the world.
These are investments more than they are a car.
The only real analogy would be to classify these cars as art.
Because they are art.
For the past 15 years, former racing driver Joe Macari has sold
some of the most expensive cars on the planet.
From high-performance modern supercars to vintage collectables.
The cars we deal in start at £20,000-£30,000.
To circa £20 million.
The customers Joe and his team sell to are often high profile.
I've got Formula One drivers, I've Formula One team bosses,
and then I've got hedge fund dealers and I've got heads of state.
Pushing high-end cars to the rich and famous
is Joe's star salesman, Louis Leven.
Good afternoon, Joe Macari.
I like to do, as a minimum, one a week.
You can make very good money selling these cars.
Let me play with some numbers and I'll get back to you.
Recently I've probably had one of my best periods.
But I took two days off in six weeks and I was here before we opened
and I was the last one out the door.
For Louis, specialist knowledge is key to clinching the deal.
The wheels aren't the right wheels for the car,
so they'll have to be changed.
They've put these on because they look nicer. They look flashy.
You've got to put time in.
Hello?
It's never, ever been a 9-to-5 job.
2012 car, 13,800 miles, that's right.
These customers will call all through the day, all through the night.
I have had the 4am phone calls in the past.
But that's why I have a work mobile, so people can get hold of me.
150 miles away is Bridgend in the Welsh valleys.
Here, an average house can be bought
for a quarter of the price it would cost in London.
And at Compact Cars owner Dave Clancy's customers
are shopping on a budget.
The cars we sell here are mainly between £2,000 to £4,000.
It's a good, solid, staple form of transport.
That's what I'm selling here. I'm not selling any dreams.
You don't desire them necessarily, but you certainly need them.
And it's lead salesman Darren Clough who does the deals.
I totally get a buzz out of sales.
It's a challenge, and I like to fulfil the challenge.
Perfect car for you. OK. £3,695, diesel, got alloys.
It's fantastic. Get it done, sorted.
Bang on the money.
Persuasive sales patter is a must for Darren...
You don't do the deal now, it might not be here after.
..as he's expected to shift cars in volume.
It's up to you, mate, but there's a chance you may not have this offer again.
My best-ever sales is ten in a week - double my expected target.
I'm very proud of that achievement.
Have we got a deal? Yes.
Job done, into the office, we'll sort the paperwork. OK.
I never stop.
Darren and Louis are both salesmen at the top of their game.
Darren is extremely proactive. He's got a feel-good factor about him.
As a salesman, he's excellent.
Louis is a lovely boy, dedicated, totally loyal and just a great lad.
But, over the next working week, they'll try to prove
that they have what it takes to sell at the other end of the spectrum.
Allowing someone into my business that's completely unknown to me
is quite a daunting prospect.
If they don't operate and thrive,
my business is going to fail, it's not going to work.
Can they meet, or even beat, one another's targets?
I've sort of pounded the forecourts in the rain.
I've been there and I've done that job,
so I'm feeling quite relaxed about it now.
Do they have what it takes to succeed in a different world?
Selling for me is not a hard thing to do.
If you've got the correct product, you get the correct client.
If you've got the correct client, you look for the correct product.
Fulfil their needs, the deal is done.
It's the morning of the trade.
Yeah. It's five grand.
Well, it's all I can do.
For both salesmen, it's time to say their goodbyes.
A cooch. A cooch, oh!
Daddy's got to go now, do you want to say goodbye to him?
Bye! Bye!
Say, "See you in a week or two." Are you going to miss me?
Miss me? Are you going to miss me?
Yeah. Oh, good. I'll miss you.
Love you all. Love you too. Bye!
Bye! Bye!
I've just got to look at it like I'm going to work.
You know, I'm just going to do my job.
It's just going to be in a different location.
I'm sure we will be coming back either crying or smiling,
one or the other, or both.
The two salesmen will begin their trade
at the midway point between London and Bridgend.
Membury service station... on the M4.
The reality is now striking me that I'm actually going to meet
the person who's going to try and fill my boots and vice versa.
We're now going to start on our new careers.
Hello, mate. How're you doing? How's it going. I'm Darren. Louis.
Pleased to meet you, mate. How's things?
All right. Where's the accent from?
From south Wales. South Wales, is that where I'm going? Yeah.
Whereabouts? Bridgend. OK. Where are you from?
I work in London. From the Smoke then?
You're going there. Different. What am I going to go and do? Sell cars.
Oh, I'm dying...
Low budget. Yeah.
Up to a maximum of 6K. OK.
And me? Similar. Still used cars.
Ferrari, Maserati... Ooh! ..Lamborghini. Big numbers.
Oh, nice. It's going to be two extremes, honestly.
That's what makes it. It's going to be like...black and white.
That might be the stumbler for you. It's like...what, only that much?
Do you live far from work? No.
Six, seven minutes. Oh, really?
Yeah, yeah, I live very close to where I'm based. OK. Yourself?
Er...a little bit further. Yeah? Yeah. Oh, how long?
If you get a good run in the morning, um, hour and a half?
Oh, you're joking! Hour 20, hour and a half. I'll be stretched.
It'll be nice to do your journey, six or seven minutes. Yeah, yeah.
Right, good luck. Best of luck. Should be successful.
Hope you do all right. See you soon, bye.
I'm quite excited. I'm an out-an-out petrolhead, always have been.
Supercars is going to be totally different for me.
I don't think he'll have too much problem talking to people.
I just hope he knows what he's talking about.
He's suited and booted, isn't he?
He's got on quite nice designer gear.
Everyone'll think he's a tax inspector or from the Social or something like this.
For the next week, Darren and Louis will be trading jobs...
..bosses...
and cars.
For Louis, Darren's 11-year-old 4x4.
For Darren...
This is complicated, man.
..a slow start.
Um...I'm not used to this. Hi-tech.
Mine is normally a map.
No...
There's no numbers now.
It's further than where I thought. I've not really ever been to Wales.
No idea how long this is going to take.
Find out, I guess, won't we?
Try again, let's try "start".
'The route is being calculated.' And I know where I'm going.
It can't give me a route. 'Please make a turn to the right.'
Oh, forget it, let's just go for it.
Lovely-jubbly.
It's the first day of the trade.
And in south-west London...
Oh, there's some nice bits of kit in there.
..Darren gets a glimpse of his new workplace.
Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, mate.
I'm going to be working with you. Excellent, welcome on board.
Wow! So, here we are, here we have it.
Dreamland. It is dreamland. I'll show you around, show you the stock,
get you settled and hopefully get you selling very quickly. Some advice.
Hi. Hello.
But first, an interview with the boss.
I'm Darren. Nice to meet you. Pleased to meet you at last.
Have a seat. Thank you very much.
So, tell me about you, then, Darren.
I sell cars from sort of 1,500 quid up to a maximum of about six grand.
Sometimes we go a bit more, but that's our core business.
You do quite a lot of numbers there, I'm assuming.
Yeah, we don't make massive profits.
But you're doing the quantity. Yeah.
Most of your clients are going to come in and make their mind up
there and then. Most of our clients will come in and take a few days
to actually decide.
My target is three a month for each of the lads. Yeah.
That's what you expect to do.
If you sell a car, I'll be very, very pleased.
That is the target I've got for you.
What do you get as a basic in...?
250 a week.
Yeah. Funnily enough, Louis's on the same basic as you. Oh, right.
You're going to take over some leads that Louis's been working on
and if you can turn them into a reality,
your bonus structure's going to be pretty good.
Good luck. Thank you. See you later.
Darren normally takes home 18 grand.
Now, he has a chance to pocket a slice of Louis's serious commission.
I think I can earn some serious cash, some serious commission here.
If someone's got a million quid to spend on a car and they want
to give me the deal, I'll do the deal, that's not a problem.
I sell...and I will sell.
Bridgend.
Should have worn my wellies, not my shoes.
This is us, is it?
"Pay as you drive" - what's that all about?
Coin-operated cars?
Come in. How are you doing? How are you? All right. The boss.
Indeed, indeed. Louis. Nice to meet you. Dave. Nice to meet you.
Welcome to Bridgend. Thank you very much. And welcome to Compact Cars.
Got a nice bit of Welsh weather for you as well.
One thing I would like to say to you, if you don't mind,
I personally think that a suit approach
is not the way forward for me so I would like you, if possible,
to change into some more casual clothes,
as I feel my customers will be more at ease with you, and obviously
everybody in the working environment will benefit from that.
For every car you sell, doesn't matter what car,
commission of £30 a car.
So, you sell one car, you get £30.
You sell another car, you get another £30.
That's how it is, that's how it works with me
and that's how it works with the people who work for me.
So, the target is set at one car a day.
He wants his pound of flesh, doesn't he? That's for sure.
He wants one car a day. That's a tough target.
Even if I did make that,
we're talking 300 quid commission by the end of two weeks.
Back home, I'd be putting half of that back in my car every day
just to get to work.
There wouldn't be anything left for me to live on, would there?
OK, this is the stock. This is what we're going to sell. OK.
All priced up very competitively
from around about £1,000, just over, up to £5,000.
We do seven-seaters, small cars,
things that are good for the current area -
economy, low insurance, low tax.
I don't do sports cars and, to be quite frank with you,
this is what we are aiming for and this is where we want to be.
It's my business, it's my baby
and I'm really looking for big, big, positive things from everybody.
OK.
This is the canteen area. OK. We've got a fridge. Yeah.
This is the dungeon. You may go in here and never return.
Please don't piss on the seat. OK, I'll try.
Here's your office. Wow. Go on through. Thank you.
Also exploring his new surroundings, Darren.
We've got an array of cars here
so we start with an Enzo,
then we've got a Ferrari 288 GTO,
Ferrari F40
and another Ferrari Enzo.
Here, we've got a Ferrari 250 GTO.
It's a recreation of an original car.
This car, today, is priced at just over half a million pounds
yet, if this was an actual original, it would be worth
in excess of £25 million, as an original. Maybe more.
The world that these people live in
is way different to what I'm used to.
It's like something from Star Trek or Star Wars.
You just need a lightsaber for this when you go out in it.
'For me, a car is a tool. It's something I jump in, use.
'The people I'm used to dealing with,
'they're looking for a deal to fulfil'
a need for their daily existence.
But the customers here can be sticklers for detail.
Every part must be proved to be original
and a car's history known inside out.
So, this is our archive room.
They're done by chassis number mainly, and some by registration.
It's all about having a whole history in a comprehensive folder.
To get this much paperwork with one car is very important.
People keep old tax discs, all the old MOTs.
It just helps with the provenance of the car
and understanding where it's been for all of its life.
Before Darren is allowed on the sales floor,
he'll need to prove he can take in the required level of detail.
This is a car I really want you to spend a lot of time and learn.
This is a Ferrari 250 Lusso. This is a very, very rare car.
Very pretty. And it's literally just arrived with us.
So it's fresh for sale.
And I want you to sell it to Joe later on today and then see
how your selling techniques are to get us going. Fantastic.
While Darren does his homework,
in Wales, it's straight in the deep end...
Right, Louis, you've got everything you need.
I want you to go out there and I want you to go make me some money.
..to try and hit his target of one car a day.
There's no big, long haul. He's got to get stuck into them,
listen to their needs and he's got to supply them quickly.
How are you doing? Louis.
Good to meet you. Thanks. Go on, you take that.
The first thing I thought when I was walking over is,
"I actually don't even know what he's standing next to."
She's got 113,000 miles.
We've got...
ticket price £3,295.
ENGINE STARTS
From the sound of her, she's...
Let me have a look at what's on here and I'll tell you what it is.
Definitely a diesel. HDI.
Do you roughly know the insurance group?
Being diesel, it's not going to be...
It's not going to be particularly high, anyway, being a diesel.
I'd have to double-check what it is in the book, which I can do.
Do you have any sort of warranty? You'll have to let me check.
It's my first day here today so I'm still sort of learning the ropes.
But, listen, come inside, let's go through all of that
and I'll find out all of those questions.
Tell me about the Lusso. OK.
1964 Lusso.
Number 329 of 350 made.
Wonderful motor.
The engine is absolutely beautiful.
And is it matching numbers?
Everything is matching numbers. Full Classiche file on it.
Ferrari certified? Yes, Ferrari certified.
And is everything under there... Everything matches. ..original? Yes.
Everything's original. It's a vehicle you could use every day.
It was actually being driven for many concourse events... OK.
..classic rallies, and was featured in...
Essen, I believe, this year before taking delivery here. OK.
Your mannerism is fantastic. It shows that you love the cars.
I'm happy with that.
You've got to inspire someone with confidence,
who's going to spend the best part of £2 million. Yeah.
Because, you know, it's not easy to get that money out of them. No.
No, it's not easy to get two grand out of some people!
Believe me, I understand that, too.
I like him. He's hidden his nerves well. I think he's genuinely excited.
'He's got a nice aura about him.'
I know the clients will like him because he's just a nice guy.
Brilliant. Thank you very much. No, well done. You're going to do good.
In Bridgend...
You all right? How you doing?
..unsure on the details, Louis turns to new boss Dave.
We've been looking at the Peugeot diesel van.
Want to talk about warranties.
Warranty and previous owners and service.
We have a log book. The car's only had two owners from new. OK.
One previous owner there. He was a company owner.
Engine size on the vehicle, 1.4 diesel.
It's the engine everybody wants. What are your thoughts?
Yes, I'm going to have a look at another couple of cars first.
But so far it's a very nice, clean, tidy one.
Now, look, go and take your time that you need. I'll give you a call
in a couple of days. I'll see how you're getting on.
Perfect. And take it for a drive and see what you think.
All right? All the best.
'My first impressions of Louis are,'
he's in the same game as I am, but it's a completely different world.
The customer took control of that.
He gave the customer a reason to leave, a reason not to be committed.
His sales ethic is completely different to mine.
I can't look after people on site.
It's not a creche. It's not a nursery.
It's a going, thriving business.
If I'm not here, when I come back,
I do expect, honestly, to have some sales.
I need some sold boards out there.
Let's hope that he's going to pull his socks up
and get the numbers under his belt, and that's what we want.
In London, Darren's first day is over.
All that's left is a 70-mile commute
back to Louis's home town of Andover.
SATNAV: 'There are traffic problems on your route.'
HE CHUCKLES Of course there are.
Oh, man, it's just a nightmare.
You're just watching your life ticking away.
Is this living? Is this enjoyment? No.
Earning a bigger commission
is not worth losing four hours of your life every day.
Eight o'clock, that's kiddies-in-bed time.
That's.. You don't see your family.
I mean, this is totally alien, you know?
Day two of the trade and it's the weekend,
the most important time of the week for Dave,
when 70% of his sales are made.
Morning, Dave. How's things? Yes, not bad, yourself?
Looking good this morning, mate. Do you like it? Yeah.
Bang on the money, mate. Just what we want.
Do you think this is going to obstruct us today, or...?
It's Wales. The one thing you'll find in weather like this
is you will have dedicated buyers.
If you can be bothered to come on a site like this,
you're looking to buy a car.
And despite the weather,
it isn't long before the prospective punters...
How you doing? Do you need any help at all?
..are out in force.
How are you doing, all right? Yes. Louis, nice to meet you.
Do you know what you want to spend? Not yet. No?
It's good.
I'm a little bit of a big man...
for this car.
1.6 diesel manual.
Plenty of room to get your baby seats
and everything else you want in the back. What do you think?
I need to talk first to my wife. If she says yes, maybe buy it.
How did we get on? Ah...
He still said, "I need to go away and think about it.
"It's a family decision. I'm not doing anything without my wife."
Who's it for? For you? Any ideas? She likes Peugeots.
OK. 107s. There she is.
Do you know what you're looking to spend? Three, three and a half.
Give me two seconds, let me go
and have a chat with Dave, the boss. I'm still learning.
Really wants a 107 but it's more money.
I asked her about the blue 206. Engine's to big.
Anything you can think of?
Citroen C2. Yaris. Fiestas.
Have a go, mate.
So, what Dave's telling me is, the Yaris, up the top there,
the Citroen C2, which is the red, £3,695
or the silver Fiesta there.
She's fussy.
That's all right, I understand it. It's an important decision.
OK, thanks anyway. All right, no probs. See you later.
What happened here? I think I was a bit...bit easy.
You've got to be more resilient.
You were out there, you let her take control of the conversation,
right, and you let her tell you exactly what SHE wanted.
I'm holding enough stock out there.
Get 'em in their cars. Get 'em talking about it.
"What about it?" "Well, we didn't think about one of those.
"I tell you what, let's price insurance."
You can change people. You CAN change people.
OK. All right.
I am surprised at myself that I'm finding this more difficult
than I thought I ever would. I've sold these sort of cars.
Maybe I'm just that far removed from this market
that it's kind of left me behind a bit.
And I've not kept up.
I'm not impressed. I'm not.
We're not in the big boy's toy showroom now,
where you have rich people coming round and thinking,
"Maybe I'll buy that for my dream car, my little lifestyle object.
Not going to happen. What happens here, people need transport
and he's not giving it to them. I mean, by the end of the week,
half of Bridgend is going to be on bloody foot.
In London, having been researching their stock...
Darren, how are we? Good morning, Andrew, how are you?
..manager Andrew feels Darren is ready for his next test.
Got someone for you today.
He's a client that's been in the business now for about 10 years.
He's a doctor, he's local, repeat customer, consistently coming in.
He'll buy a car normally in the region of up to and around £100,000.
He has had a car before up at £200,000.
It's more of a toy for him than an everyday thing.
The toy in question, a V8 Ferrari California,
with a price tag of £120,000.
Beautiful finish inside.
Special upholstery. It's a proper car.
The customer has bought four supercars here in the past,
spending hundreds of thousands of pounds.
How much mileage has it done?
I'll get that for you after.
Have a little sit. Just have the experience, see how it compares
to the other ones you've owned.
If we can deal this car and Darren could get a deal away early,
it'd be good, but we'll see.
Can I open the bonnet?
Just hold them for a second. I don't want to scratch anything.
Sales can be lost on something really small.
Darren's busking it a bit at the moment.
The truth of the matter is some of the smaller, finer detail
is what makes and seals a deal.
Sometimes there is a little lever. A little lever. There it is, yeah.
It's clean, eh?
He's still got a lot to learn.
The fact that he couldn't show him how to open the bonnet,
couldn't answer a lot of his questions.
How many owners has it had? I'll have to have a look at the book.
If you're really interested, we'll get all the info.
Yes, that's the main thing.
It's a bit of a concern. That, to me, is really key to success.
Even after yesterday's prep,
Darren's knowledge isn't up to scratch.
Thanks very much.
Andrew decides it's time for a debrief.
I think the selling process went OK, not great.
The fact you couldn't open the bonnet, that after 30 seconds or a minute to open the bonnet
we couldn't show him the bonnet, some clients would be like, "You don't know what you're selling."
I think the product knowledge is where you fell down massively.
Yeah, definitely.
That's why I've got all this for the weekend. Indeed.
You've got a lot of bedtime reading to do. I was cringing.
The problem here is I'm trying to get the product knowledge and it's hard.
Back in Bridgend...
In my time, I've had three Clios, actually.
Have you? You know, I've never had a Renault.
No? No. Never had a Renault.
I've had Fords. Yep.
..after a disappointing second day, finally, a breakthrough.
So, do you need some sort of deposit, then?
Yeah. OK, what sort of deposit would you need?
If we did 10%, but if you call it 300 quid. OK.
That's great. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Deal done.
But Louis will have to wait to find out
how many of his customers actually sign on the dotted line.
This morning I did find it tough.
I was looking at the hills in the back there and I was ready to run.
Really lovely to meet you. Than you very much.
And we will see you soon. OK, thank you.
Take care. See you later.
It's made me...one step happier, shall we say?
Sold is sold. Well done. Well done. Appreciate that.
I'll be happier when we do the numbers
that we need to do by the end of the week.
It's 5.45, and in London,
despite being told he needs to do his research,
Darren's decided to call it a day.
There's a lot of work. There's a lot of knowledge to be picked up.
I will try my best to familiarise myself
with every nut and bolt on every car.
But on the other hand, you need to disconnect from work as well.
Between the information you have to take in, four hours' journey,
eight-hour working day...
My work hours, normally nine till six,
and then after that it's my time.
I have to have "me" time otherwise I won't be me.
I'm a man, not a machine. And I don't want to be a machine.
Darren's been living in Andover for three days.
And the commute to London is no joyride.
It's a massive amount of fuel every week.
In two days, I've done 50 quid.
So, it's got to be over £100 a week.
That's well over £400 per month.
That's a lot of money.
That's like... That's somebody's mortgage every month, just in gas.
At the showroom, the customer interested in the California
is coming back for a test drive.
That'll be going today.
I'm in a Ferrari California... in October, in London...
HE LAUGHS
..with a cool guy, whoo!
In the last few years,
London has become a playground for the world's richest.
Cos I used to live around here.
These are the mansion houses.
Look at this one here - I mean, it's massive.
These are plus-£10 million here. Wow!
Today, the capital is home to almost 10,000 multi-millionaires.
Land here's like gold.
These people are buying land everywhere,
and people want to build -
anywhere they can build, they'll build.
Things are somewhat different in Bridgend,
home to some of the most economically deprived neighbourhoods
in Wales.
Seven years ago, recession hit the town hard.
Many struggled to get credit...
..and Dave saw his sales plummet.
So he came up with a plan to help himself...
and locals in need of a car.
It's a system that I've got in place for car finance.
It's in-house, and it's funded by myself for my customers.
He offers people finance on a week-by-week basis.
When payment is received,
he sends a PIN direct to their mobile.
If they don't pay for it, the car doesn't run.
Basically, that's where the word "pay as you drive" comes from.
It's a fantastic system, and it gives a lot of people
the ability to own a motor vehicle, affordable payments.
If I didn't have this system in place,
there's a huge number of people in this immediate area
who wouldn't be able to have a car, wouldn't be able to afford a car.
You're stuck for a car
and you haven't got the money to buy a car, you know,
finance is sometimes the only option,
and if that's taken away from you, where do you go?
So, yeah, I really see how that can help people out.
It's clever, I like it.
One customer keen to use the pay-as-you-drive service
is Martin.
There you go.
Seen the boot on these?
It's all right. It's bloody smart, isn't it?
Out on the road, Louis finds out why a car is a must for Martin.
This would be ideal, just to nip about, here, there and everywhere.
Especially after being ill for so long
with heart failure.
It's just... Is that what it was? Yeah.
Sorry to hear. Yeah, I thought I had the flu for six months,
and then I just died. Twice. You did?!
Yeah.
Don't go again, will you?
I'm trying not to.
But it's not just Martin who needs the car.
My wife, who's got cystic fibrosis, has to keep going back and to
to hospital to have regular checkups,
so we need a car that's going to see us up and down the motorway,
back and to between hospital visits and me trying to get to work,
and things like that. It is tough,
because I know the time spent with my wife is limited.
I don't know if she'll be here next year,
I don't know if she'll be here in five years.
I'm still a bit in shock, really.
It got me, you know? I was standing there, and I was grabbing my breath.
You know? I was... I had to sort of check myself once or twice, you know?
You don't hear stuff like that, you don't meet them sort of people,
and he's had a tough run. A real tough run.
But I want him to leave with a car, I want to make sure that, you know,
we've done everything right for him. Definitely.
The Citroen could be just what Martin's family need.
But first, he'll have to go away and do his sums.
Excellent. Thank you very much. No, no, thank you.
All right. Nice to meet you.
All right? Thanks very much.
Not all second-hand cars are bought to be driven.
With the potential to increase in value faster than gold,
some classic cars are purchased and stored as commodities.
Right, I've got a guy coming in to meet you today. Yeah.
I want you to do a deal,
and this deal - you know, this should be an easy one.
All right. Um... This guy's purely looking at it as an investment.
Is he going to use it? Probably not taking the family out,
not bothered if it's got one seat or six seats, he doesn't care. Mm-hm.
So, you know, you need to look at this client
from a completely different perspective.
He just needs to know a few facts,
and he's going to be very interested in the numbers.
So, we'll go round all the vehicles quickly. OK.
With the customer looking to invest
between a quarter and half a million pounds,
it's down to Darren to assure him he can make a good return.
Classic Ferrari.
Hmm.
I'd like to know, like, what was it worth, sort of, a year ago?
I'm going to have to do a bit more research on that.
Currently valued at just over a quarter of a million,
this silver 365 has huge investment potential...
A totally usable classic, as well.
..but Darren's still dealing in practicalities.
You can actually sit four people in it... Yeah.
..but not quite as spacious as the F330.
I was looking for an investment.
When I asked the prices of the cars and how much they've gone up by,
it just would be nice to get a better idea of that.
Well, how much was this worth a year ago?
I would imagine...
I'd have to look at the exact figures,
to give you increased values of...
Yeah, cos obviously I want to know what it was last year.
'He was sort of trying, but I think obviously'
his car knowledge isn't quite as good as Louis's.
It's a lot of money that I'm parting with,
and I want to have confidence
that I'm not going to lose that money straight away, you know?
I won't be rushing into a decision, buying a car today.
With no sale on the table, Andrew asks for a postmortem.
Normally, every time he comes in, he walks out with a new car.
I would love to have seen him go away with,
"This is the car you should have, this is the one,
"this is going to make you money."
I think we just really need to be mindful of the fact
that it is more of an investment than anything else. Yeah.
I don't know if we're going to get a second bite of the cherry with him.
I don't think he's got the time
to come and spend another hour or two with us.
I don't agree with that at all.
With my previous experience in the selling side of things,
in the short time we were together... Yeah.
I felt very confident. He seemed to walk away with a smile on his face.
I mean, I think that's the way I play my game, to be honest with you.
I don't think he's adapting to our type of client, is the problem.
I think he's still set in his ways,
with the clients he's used to dealing with,
not our style of client.
With Darren yet to clinch a deal,
Andrew checks in with owner Joe Macari.
He hasn't sold anything yet.
He's had a few good inquiries, a few good leads,
he's met quite a few clients, now,
but hasn't actually got anything near over the line -
not even to a point of potential deposit or anything at that point.
All his life he's dealt in vehicles that have just been purposeful.
All of a sudden he's now aiming at a different clientele.
Now, we don't want to lose... No. ..a potential deal at this level.
Not at all.
And, you know, Darren's at a point now where he should be doing a deal.
It's halfway through the trade.
In Bridgend, Martin is back.
This time with his family in tow.
Hiya, all right? This is my wife, Sam, and this is Eric.
All right, young man?
You well?
I've had a chat with my wife about the car. Yeah.
And we've done the figures,
and we just don't think we can go to that type of money...
OK. ..to borrow on finance. OK. Um...
So, I was wondering if you might have anything else a bit cheaper,
you know, that we might be able to have a look at. Yeah.
Yeah, definitely. You know, that might suit us a bit better.
Yeah, definitely.
With Martin priced out of the Citroen,
Louis shows him a cheaper option -
a Golf for sale at £2,500.
ERIC: I like this car! It's nice, isn't it?
Can we keep this car?
Well, we'll see. We don't know yet.
If it was that simple...
If it was all that simple. I know.
It's nice.
No, I like it. I think if we could get the figures right... Yeah.
..we'll definitely... I think we'll have it, to be honest.
Great.
£50.08 a week. Yeah. Done and dusted in a year.
Um, how much is the deposit?
Er, £300, as we suggested. OK.
Yeah? Yeah. No problem.
What do you think? Definitely, yeah.
Yeah? Yeah, we need a new car.
OK, excellent. Thank you very much! Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Say thank you. Thank you!
Thank you. Thank you.
My job, and what I do, is always to sell cars.
You know?
You don't always understand the story behind the reasons why
somebody might need a car.
In this instance it's quite apparent
why Martin and his family need that car,
and I'm pleased I've helped, you know, today,
and found him what he needs.
It's 6pm,
and, with a second sale under his belt, Louis is clocking off.
Er, right now, I'm going to Darren's house to meet his family.
I honestly don't remember the last time
I actually went to somebody's house for dinner.
I'm never back in time to do any of that.
Unlike his normal commute, which can take over two hours,
Darren's house is just a few minutes away.
Hi. Hi! How are you doing?
I'm Judith. Louis. Nice to meet you.
This is Emily. Hi, nice to meet you. How are you doing?
Nice to meet you. This is Jack. Hi. Jack, nice to meet you.
How you doing? All right?
This all looks good.
So, are you missing Darren? Yeah.
A lot.
It's like an incomplete jigsaw, and...
..something's kind of off balance. It's not right.
Would you all normally sit down of an evening here
and have dinner together?
Most of the time, yeah.
You know, we're not the type to sit here and just eat and say nothing.
It's... You...spend your time and have a good chit-chat. Oh, yeah.
Yeah. Yeah.
Do you live far from your work?
Probably just shy of 70 miles each way.
Oh, my God! That's a long way.
70 miles each way?! Yeah.
The last house that we came from, we were renting that house, so...
The area was lovely, but we just could never afford to...
To live there. ..to buy round there, so we moved further out.
I mean, how do you see your kids?!
When do you...? When do you fit that family bit in?
Yeah, um... I don't.
And it's becoming more and more apparent
over the past few days, actually.
I do think I miss a lot, actually. Yeah. You know?
Um... Sometimes it takes a little kind of nudge
to make you realise what... Mm.
..what's missing, and what... Yeah.
I think Judith sort of hammered home a point to me
that family time is very important, and very precious,
and if you don't take it, it's soon going to be gone.
You know, I might think I spend enough time with the kids,
but you know, in retrospect, in comparison,
I don't really think I do spend a lot of time.
There's a lot to be said for spending more time together,
more time as a family.
In London, Darren is yet to hit his target of one supercar a week.
Come through, Darren. Thank you.
What we're going to do is, I want to show you around what we do here.
With no success on the sales floor, Joe wants to inspire him
by taking him behind the scenes.
This car's a client's car. Yeah.
Which we restored four or five years ago. Right.
And, again, he bought it as a basket,
and then he paid us to restore it, which we did.
And it's just come in for routine service,
where one of the brake callipers is a bit sticky...
Right. ..from the lack of use.
Because it was rebuilt properly... Yeah. ..in the time we did it,
its maintenance is really nice and low,
and he's driven this car to Rome and back a couple of times...
Wow! ..and driven it to Paris, and he has a lovely time owning it.
That's just beautiful. Yeah!
You know, and once it's cleaned, it'll be back up to spec.
Wow, there's cars here that I've just dreamt about, or...
I mean, some of these were literally on my wall
when I was sort of a teenager, you know?
There's some things here I've never seen in the flesh.
I've seen them on posters, seen them in magazines, seen them on TV,
but now I'm actually looking at them, I can actually sit in them
and touch them, and, you know, that's quite amazing.
That is amazing.
This is it.
This is, for me, you know, getting greasy,
getting into the gubbins of how it all goes together...
So I should've put you in the workshop, not the showroom(!)
Yeah! That'll be it. I like to be in both places, actually.
If I was here all the time, I'd be under there as much as in there,
believe me. I know the feeling.
But I need something sold.
Yeah, I'm going for it, I'm going for it.
Impressed by Darren's obvious passion,
Joe's taking him to Devon, to see a car that's up for sale.
This is how I love to see a car.
If you see it like this, there's nothing hidden.
I can see that, I get it.
You want to see it warts and all.
A vital part of Joe's business is buying prestigious classics
before restoring them to their former glory.
I mean, how good does it get?
You're buying everything in a box,
and then you're putting it all back together.
It's like being a kid doing Meccano all over again. Yeah!
The Aston Martin DB6 Volante.
Once restored, it could fetch up to £800,000.
These are good cars.
They're good appreciating assets.
They're good to drive. Mm-hm. People like them.
But the reality is, they've got to be on their toes.
It's in the best place I love to buy a car like this -
because then there's nothing hidden.
We can see everything there is to see, and while we're here,
let's take advantage of that and see what we've got on our hands.
Joe wants Darren to help him assess the car...
Let's examine it. Let's just have a look at it properly.
..before negotiating its purchase at the best possible price.
It's quite a big ask of me today,
it's something that's a lot of responsibility.
Actually being involved in the pricing of it as well,
it's a lot of pressure in that respect,
to try and get the thing correct.
To impress Joe, and show everyone what I'm really capable of.
While Darren tries to absorb every detail of the Aston Martin...
..Louis is getting a second chance with a customer
he allowed to walk away.
Good afternoon. How are you doing? You well?
I'm very good, thank you. Good.
Good to see you. Thanks for popping back.
Just wondering whether the car's still available. Yeah.
How flexible are you with regards to...
I mean, I was hoping for the 27... 2,750 mark.
No? No. Too far.
I've got a feeling we've got to be around the three mark. OK.
I've got kind of a...
bit of tolerance where I go to. That's kind of me at three, really.
OK. Can we do a deal?
We certainly can, yeah. Marvellous. Nice meeting you anyway.
Good to meet you. Thanks for your business, again.
Louis managed to get the sale for the Peugeot van.
We've got it, we've nailed it. Good news.
She needs an MOT, so that will be fresh.
You guys will get the MOT done? We'll do the MOT for you.
Today he's been a lot more proactive in my opinion.
What are your thoughts?
I like it.
I liked it too, it was nice. Good.
And Louis's new-found confidence...
Go on, then, 25. 25? Yeah. Well done.
Honestly, well done, guys. You've got yourself a cracking deal there.
..means the sales start coming thick and fast.
Sure? Good. Thanks.
In London, Joe's tasked Darren
with negotiating for the car they saw in Devon.
I respect Joe and I don't want to let him down.
He's given me this opportunity, not just to be here,
but now an opportunity to really prove my negotiating skills
on the other side of the fence.
So, yeah, we'll go and do it.
With restoration costs of around a quarter of a million
Darren will need to secure the car well under the asking price.
I want to own the car.
I haven't invested the time in going to see it for nothing.
I know exactly how much I want to own the car for.
And that way he's got a maximum, he's got a minimum.
A profit's made in the buying, the selling's the easy bit.
The stakes are high.
The price the car is bought at will seriously effect Joe's bottom line.
Hello, can I help you?
Hi. It's Darren speaking from Joe Macari. Hi. How are you?
Very well, thank you. Yourself? Yeah, not bad at all.
Right. What's the money you're looking for on it?
I think we discussed 425 previously and...
I think that's really where we need to be.
Personally, after conversations with people
and looking at similar products,
we're probably looking to start sort of...
early to middle 3s. 340, 350.
I think you're trying to insult me at the moment. It's not an insult.
It's based on the current market, to be perfectly honest, Mr Fuller.
If he rubs this guy up the wrong way,
the guy will just close down and he won't get near it.
What will be the sort of acceptable figure for yourself?
Not your 425, at the moment it's just way too strong for us, you know.
Erm...
I'm really reluctant to come off the 425. I mean, I have other interest.
I mean, I'm not that fussed whether I sell it or not.
Right. I'm in two minds.
You've really only got one chance to do it properly
and that's first time.
I think we need to be early 4s, really.
I'm sure we can come a little bit closer.
Realistic price for me I can probably get to late 3s,
but you're not going to get much change out of about 375,
380 is the maximum, to be perfectly honest with you.
The figure for us is 400,000.
OK.
Is that 400 definite, or could we maybe talk a little bit less?
I think we're pretty much on that 400 grand to be honest.
As long as you're happy to get all the paperwork
and that in order, he'll go with the four.
Lovely. OK, thank you very much, Mr Fuller.
Hope you enjoy the car. I'm sure we will.
I'm sure you'll come and see it when it's finished as well.
Thank you. Bye. Bye.
Darren has secured the car for £25,000 under the asking price.
The most expensive car I've ever bought, probably ever will buy.
Even if I won the lottery, I probably wouldn't buy one myself for that amount of money.
He's suddenly got his feet now and he's sort of learning to run.
The next morning there's a visitor for Darren.
Hello. Hi. How's it going?
How are you? Good.
Nice to see you. Good to see you.
Missed you. Missed you too.
It's been a week. Over a week.
Wife Judith has made the trip to London.
How has it been?
All right. It's different.
Fab experience, but long hours and tired.
So, have you sold any cars yet?
Not yet. Nope.
One test drive.
And one guy interested in a couple as investments,
but it's just so long-winded.
If you were talking about kind of commission in the thousands...
Just think what we could do with that.
I mean, we could move out,
not worry about paying everything
and making sure the kids were all right.
Nice little nest egg. Get things moving a bit. Yeah.
Darren has one last chance to hit his target
and take home some serious commission.
Put the arse a tiny bit that way.
Joe's holding an event at the showroom for 80 customers and VIPs.
I've got to sell something.
You know, we're down to the last 24 hours of life in this experience
and I really still want to sell something.
In Bridgend,
Louis's time at the car lot is almost over.
Right. Let me just take you through the car first.
There's all your service stamps in there.
Just had a service now.
A local couple are looking to buy after their car broke down.
It's been difficult this week.
Obviously we live in the valley and you need a car to get about.
Me and the children have been stuck in most of the week.
I've seen a lot of films.
You just fill out this box here for me
and then give me your autograph down there.
I don't think that was the hardest sale I'll ever come across in my life,
but I'm pleased we got it done, I'm pleased that they're pleased.
There you go. You've got the keys.
Boss got the keys. Yeah, boss.
You couldn't have asked for a better salesperson, to be honest.
He's helped us, talked us through what we need to know about the car.
I think Louis would fit in Bridgend lovely.
He's already moulded himself already.
In London...
..the event is in full swing.
The showroom is packed with potential buyers.
For Darren, one final push.
The odds are, out of those 60 people,
somebody will want to buy a car.
How's it going? I'm Darren. Pleased to meet you.
One owner. 3,000 miles. Wow.
Hi. Pleased to meet you.
So, you want to buy the Pagani, then? I don't know about that.
LAUGHTER
I've had really good feedback tonight.
A lot of clients and friends who have come up,
just met him on the way in
and said, "Lovely guy. Really charming.
"Really passionate about cars." And heard some really nice things.
A brand-spanking new car with custom-built suitcases.
One each side. It's a usable car.
Do you want to buy it?
I'll think about it.
It's the last day.
Before Louis and Darren can return to their own lives
one final meeting with the bosses.
Morning, Dave. How are you doing? Not bad. You?
All good things must come to an end. Yup.
So...
End of the event, end of the experience.
What do you think? Sad to be going, to be honest.
You're just starting to warm up now, aren't you? Yeah.
I'd have liked a little bit longer.
Another two weeks and I'd have definitely had that bloody sale.
A little bit disappointed with that.
As far as I'm concerned, I regard it as a success.
You've come here, you've sold goods, you've integrated
and you've been comfortable in your surroundings.
More than anything I will take away fond memories of the people
from around here, yourself included.
There's a massive positive there.
I think your pluses is your personality and your persona,
and that for me would be your biggest attribute.
I think you could sell cars here.
Your basic, as you know, 250...
For Louis, a chance to find out how many of his deals went through.
Commission - we've sold five cars.
Gives you the grand total of £160 commission.
Obviously I'll pay you a basic, which is the same as
what you earn at home.
Unfortunately, you haven't made a sale,
so you've got no commission to look forward to. That's not a problem.
But I'm far richer in other ways and I'm taking a lot with me,
so I'm happy with that. Excellent. I'm glad to hear it.
Thank you, mate. I appreciate it.
Thanks for having me, and you look after yourself. I will do. You too.
Right, guys.
After seven days away from their work and family lives,
time to say goodbye.
Before heading home, Louis and Darren will meet halfway.
So, how was it then?
Tough. Yeah? Yeah. How did you go?
Five. Oh, that's bang on, mate. That's good.
How did you get on?
Nothing, mate. No? No.
Close. OK, good.
There's so much to learn, there's so much to see and so much going on.
New environment. It was a good learning curve.
Yeah. Definitely took a lot of out it.
I reckon another two weeks and I would have done it.
I would have been bang on.
I take my hat off to you for that journey. I couldn't do it.
Why not? It's too much hard work, man.
I've learnt that maybe I do need to take a step back from things,
you know.
My focus and my goal at the minute is just to make sure that...
they're all right.
You're the same as I am. You work hard for your family.
You obviously love 'em.
It would be nice to find an angle that allowed me
to have a bit more time.
If I can get to where you are in your life, I'll be a happy man.
Thank you very much, mate. I appreciate that.
Still got a long way to go, me, as well, I'm not that old!
Every year is harder, but I'm not that old.
Sorted. Cheers, fella.
Fantastic. Well done. Sorted.
Hey. You all right?
Welcome home. Thanks.
I am glad to be back. I'm really glad to be back.
It was tough to sell five cars.
It was a lot of push, push, go, go, go,
and it's taught me a lot, it's opened my eyes a lot.
I miss my family a lot.
It's kind of made me appreciate more what I've got.
Now I'm seeing maybe I need to find a bit more of an equal balance
between a work life and a home life.
It was quite hard at some times, quite tiring at other times.
That was the shock, the length of a working day,
just no time for anything else.
You're literally just getting up to work.
You spend more time with the family, that's far more important
and the free time is worth a lot more.
It was a big adventure and I enjoyed it.
If someone walks in looking for a high-end car,
I'll be straight on the phone.
I've got those contacts.
If somebody walks in looking for a Maserati or a Ferrari...
..give me ten minutes.