Obituary: Mark Vidak – he changed how NZ sold cars

One of the New Zealand motor industry’s most experienced and respected distribution executives, Mark Vidak, has died after a battle with cancer. He was 69.

Vidak’s career spanned more than four decades and touched almost every corner of the new vehicle business, from the Japanese giants of the 1980s to the arrival of the Chinese brands, where his final role saw him establish BYD’s original dealer network in New Zealand.

He entered the industry as a graduate at Nissan New Zealand in 1982, working through area management, fleet and dealer development roles before being appointed national sales manager in 1993.

It was his next move that put him at the centre of one of the most consequential fights in the industry’s modern history. As chief executive of Daewoo Automotive NZ from 1997, Vidak created the Daewoo Direct model, selling new cars to the public through an 0800 number, call centres, territory managers and home demonstrations, with no bricks-and-mortar dealerships and a network of 33 dedicated service centres.

The Motor Vehicle Dealers Institute took the view that the law required vehicles to be sold from licensed sites, and the dispute ran for two years through licence suspensions and High Court injunctions before Parliament settled the matter with the Motor Vehicle Dealers Amendment Act in October 1999.

The Government made no secret of what prompted the change. Introducing the bill in May 1999, Justice Minister Tony Ryall said the issue had come to the Government’s attention after the action taken against Daewoo’s direct marketing, with the amendment, supported by every party in the House, allowing dealers to conduct business at any place and opening the door to selling cars by internet and direct television.

Vidak told the New Zealand Herald in 2000 that the fight cost the company well over six figures in legal fees, “but it was necessary to keep ahead in a deregulated market”. Daewoo celebrated the law change with a national road show that sold 260 cars between Invercargill and Whangarei, and reported an 84% lift in sales for 1999 in a flat market.

In the same interview he predicted car selling “will definitely be more electronically driven”, with costs needing to stay low to compete with used imports. A quarter of a century on, with agency models and online retail now established features of the market, the assessment reads as well ahead of its time.

After Daewoo’s Korean parent collapsed, Vidak moved into fleet as general manager of ANZ subsidiary FleetPartners NZ, leading 110 staff across four branches, before national sales roles at GM Holden and Honda New Zealand.

The longest chapter of his later career came at Ateco, where from 2010 he led sales for the first wave of Chinese brands in New Zealand, Great Wall, Chery and Foton, before an eight-year stint as group network, planning and distribution manager across the Fiat Chrysler and Chinese portfolios, responsible for dealer network development, sales planning and vehicle logistics.

His final assignment brought his career full circle. Through 2022 and early 2023 he helped to evaluate and set up the BYD retail network for New Zealand, laying the foundations for what has become one of the market’s fastest-growing brands. The man who fought the dealer establishment in the 1990s spent his last working years as one of the country’s foremost builders of dealer networks.

Away from the industry, Vidak was deeply rooted in the Franklin community. He served as general manager of Counties Racing Club at Pukekohe in 2007 and sat on the board of Pukekohe Golf Club.

Ateco Group chairman Neville Crichton paid tribute to a colleague of many years.

“Mark worked in many core areas of the Ateco Group business, from dealer development and sales and general management. His knowledge of the industry was rooted with deep experience. He was a good friend and will be sadly missed by many,” Crichton says.

Vidak turned 69 in July, only a short time after his retirement. He is survived by his wife, two daughters and granddaughter.

At his own request there will be a memorial rather than a funeral, to be held in the coming months at Pukekohe Golf Club.