We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services.
Our privacy statement:
Below you can choose for which purposes you want to allow cookies on the website of AUMACON.
In addition to the (printed) report, which can be ordered above via an order form, the AUMACON Garage Formula Top 40 is also available in Excel and/or PDF format. Interested? Please email backoffice@aumacon.nl for prices and any other enquiries, and have a look at the sample file in Excel. The Excel file (2026 Edition) contains no fewer than 4,462 branches.
Click here for a glimpse of the National Garage Formula Event 2026.
The National Garage Formula Event 2027 will be held in September 2027 in Amsterdam.
2026 edition:
It was already evident in the previous edition: universal formats are experiencing stagnation in the growth of their outlet numbers. What is new is that the total number of supporting formats is now also stagnating. Overall, the number of franchise affiliations fell slightly to 4,462 (-1 per cent). This and more is revealed in AUMACON’s 16th franchise survey for the Dutch market.
Many universal franchise schemes have already shifted their focus in recent years towards higher-quality franchisees. However, not all franchisees are able or willing to meet these additional requirements, resulting in contract breaches. Furthermore, many garage businesses are hampered in their development by staff shortages, whether or not combined with a lack of business succession. Increasingly, this is also leading to business closures. This is remarkable, given that the economic conditions in the market can be described as downright good. Market demand for car maintenance and repairs remains high. It is, in fact, primarily internal factors that are putting pressure on the chains’ growth ambitions.
In the Netherlands, 22 chains fall into the ‘universal’ category; 18 chains can be classified as ‘support’, of which 2 focus primarily on the sale of lubricants; 6 are brand-oriented; 6 are tyre chains; 2 are leasing chains; and 2 are technical chains aimed at car dealerships.
Nevertheless, the chains have experienced rapid growth in recent years. Dutch garage chains now have a combined total of 4,462 members. Ten years ago, in 2016, the number of chain members stood at just 2,614 businesses.
The 10 largest chains saw their combined number of members fall by 2 per cent over the past year. This decline is virtually identical to the overall decrease of 1 per cent. Incidentally, this new edition sees two new names make their debut: Auto Expert (part of Autodistribution Nederland) and De Dorpsgarage. There have been no dropouts this year, bringing the total number back to exactly 40 chains.
Seventeen chains have crossed the ‘magic’ threshold of 100 branches, enabling them to claim nationwide coverage. The status of ‘nationwide coverage’ is important when seeking to offer services to, for example, leasing companies operating nationwide.
Bosch dominates the rankings with two chains. The supporting chain, Bosch Workshop Partner, has experienced strong growth in recent years and is now by far the largest chain in the Netherlands. The other chain from the same group – Bosch Car Service – is holding its own impressively as by far the largest universal chain. Despite a slight decline in the number of participants, Vakgarage remains securely in third place. Sixteen schemes have fewer than 50 participants; most of these smaller schemes are stable and experience only sporadic changes in the number of branches.
Fastest-growing chain
The first copy of Edition 2026 was presented during the National Garage Franchise Event in Amsterdam to this year’s fastest-growing universal franchise: Car Service Partner – a franchise from Nexus Auto Nederland.
AUMACON director Clem Dickmann commented: “Car Service Partner is one of the youngest chains on the Dutch market. Nevertheless, it has managed to achieve steady growth in the number of branches in this highly competitive market, where a few very large players dominate. In just three years, Car Service Partner has grown to 48 branches. A fine achievement and possibly a prelude to nationwide coverage, for which expansion in the west of the Netherlands is particularly needed. However, given the stagnating franchise market, Car Service Partner’s current development is certainly remarkable.”
Tjep Fennema, regional manager for key accounts at Vakgarage owner LKQ – last year’s winner and pictured on the left – presented the first copy of the new Top 40 report to Kees Willemsen, director of marketing and sales at Nexus Auto Nederland. The presentation took place on 1 September at Dauphine Amsterdam.
[Photo caption:] The first copy of the AUMACON Garage Formula Top 40 Edition 2026 is presented to Kees Willemsen (right) of Nexus Auto Nederland by Tjep Fennema of LKQ/Vakgarage – last year’s winner.
Amsterdam/Leiden, 1 September 2026
