Supercheap Auto is an Australian automotive parts and accessories retailer. It was founded in 1972, operating as a mail-order business and opened its first store in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 1974. It now has 300 stores across Australia and New Zealand.

History

Supercheap Auto was founded by Reg and Hazel Rowe in 1972 as a mail-order business. The couple sold imported battery chargers and other automotive accessories from their home. In 1974, they opened their first store in

Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley (often called "The Valley" by local residents) is an inner suburb of the City of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. In the , Fortitude Valley had a population of 9,708 people. The suburb features two pedestri ...

. The company has over 300 stores throughout Australia and also in New Zealand, the 250th being

Timaru Timaru (; mi, Te Tihi-o-Maru) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to ...

in New Zealand and the 300th being

Holden Hill Holden Hill is a suburb in the inner north-eastern suburbs of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is around 10 km from the Adelaide CBD. Government Holden Hill is in both the City of Port Adelaide Enfield and City of Tea Tree Gully lo ...

in South Australia.

Store formats

Supercheap Auto has some newer formats stores including 1,000sqm Superstores at Oxenford,

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

, Cannon Hill and

Caboolture Caboolture () is a town and suburb in Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the suburb of Caboolture had a population of 26,433 people. It is located on the north side of the Caboolture River, which separates the town from Morayfi ...

and smaller 400sqm stores as well as more common 700 sq m formats.

Sponsorships

Holden VF Commodore of Russell Ingall 2013

From 2005 to 2020, Supercheap Auto held sponsorship

naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization whereby a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event, typically for a defined period of t ...

for the

Bathurst 1000 The Bathurst 1000 (formally known as the Repco Bathurst 1000) is a touring car race held annually on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently run as part of the Supercars Championship, the most recen ...

. It has also sponsored several

Supercars Championship The Supercars Championship is a touring car racing category in Australia, running as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regulations, governing the sport. Supercars events take place in all Australian ...

teams since 1997 under the brand Supercheap Auto Racing, including

Steven Ellery Racing Steven Ellery Racing was an Australia motorsport team which contested several series in its home country, including as the Supercheap Auto Racing V8 Supercar team. The team ceased operations at the end of 2005, with the lead driver Steven Ell ...

(2000-2004),

Paul Weel Racing Paul Weel Racing was an Australian motor racing team which competed in the V8 Supercars Championship Series between 1998 and 2008. Ford Years After some brief appearances in 1997 in minor events, Paul Weel Racing debuted in the 1998 Austral ...

(2005-2007),

Paul Morris Motorsport Paul Morris Motorsport, also known as its business name of Nemo Racing, is an Australian motor racing team that competed in V8 Supercars between 2000 and 2012. The team also won the 1997 AMP Bathurst 1000 and four Australian Super Touring Cha ...

(2008-2011), Walkinsaw Racing (2012-2015) and

Tickford Racing Tickford Racing (formerly known as Prodrive Racing Australia and Ford Performance Racing) is an Australian motor racing team which competes in the Supercars Championship. The team currently campaigns three Ford Mustangs, with their current drive ...

(2016-2020). It was naming rights sponsor of the

from

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

until

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, and became the naming rights sponsor of the

TCR Australia Touring Car Series The TCR Australia Touring Car Series is a touring car racing series based in Australia. The series is run as part of the Shannons Nationals series. Background The TCR Touring Car formula, introduced in 2014, is based on four or five door fron ...

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

. After the Supercars title and Bathurst race sponsorship went to

Repco Repco is an Australian automotive engineering/retailer company. Its name is an abbreviation of Replacement Parts Company and was for many years known for reconditioning engines and for specialized manufacturing, for which they gained a high ...

in 2021, Supercheap became an associate sponsor of

Triple Eight Race Engineering Triple Eight Race Engineering, (branded as Red Bull Ampol Racing) is an Australian motor racing team competing in the Supercars Championship. The team has been the only Brisbane based V8 Supercar team since its formation, originally operating ...

as well as naming rights sponsor for entries in the

and

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

Bathurst 1000.Lowndes and Fraser confirmed for Bathurst wildcard
''Auto Action'' 4 June 2022

References

External links

* {{Retailers in New Zealand Automotive companies of Australia Automotive part retailers Automotive part retailers of New Zealand Companies based in Brisbane Retail companies established in 1972 Super Retail Group 1972 establishments in Australia