[Startup Story] Digitizing the Entire Automotive Sales and Distribution Journey EPIKAR Targets the U.S. and Southeast Asia

Digital transformation has only recently emerged as a major theme within the automotive industry. Despite its long history, the sector experienced relatively limited structural change for decades. Core technologies remained largely unchanged, industry leadership rarely shifted, and transformation was often viewed as unnecessary or even disruptive.

That paradigm began to change rapidly as the industry transitioned from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles, while advanced information and communication technologies were introduced across the value chain. As a result, large scale digital transformation has now taken hold throughout the automotive industry.

This shift spans the entire ecosystem from manufacturing to sales and distribution. In particular, digitalization within automotive retail focuses on converting essential data such as sales performance, test drive programs, and financing information into structured digital assets. These insights are then delivered via digital platforms, enabling both sales consultants and customers to access complex information easily and transparently.

One company at the forefront of this transformation is EPIKAR, founded in 2016 and led by CEO Han Bosuk.

Although the company employs just over 20 people, EPIKAR has attracted industry attention for pioneering a largely unexplored domain through differentiated development capabilities. In Korea, EPIKAR is the only company providing specialized digital solutions exclusively for automotive dealership operations a distinction that remains rare even on a global scale. Notably, nearly 90% of its workforce consists of R&D engineers, underscoring the company’s technology driven DNA.

Digitizing Dealer Operations Through Data

EPIKAR provides a digital platform known as DMS (Dealer Management Solution), designed to support the digital transformation of dealership operations.

Through DMS, automotive sales processes traditionally handled through paperwork and face to face interaction can be converted into fully digital and contactless workflows. For example, when a customer requests a vehicle test drive, the platform automatically manages the entire process from application and approval to vehicle assignment and operational tracking.

By automating these workflows, dealerships can significantly reduce both time and operational costs while improving accuracy and efficiency.

“Asked to describe EPIKAR in one sentence, I would say we are a company that leads the digital transformation of the entire customer experience required to sell a car and provides the platform to enable it,” said CEO Han.

“The automotive industry has a long history, which also means many outdated practices remain deeply embedded. We believed that digitizing these processes and adapting them to mobile environments could significantly improve customer satisfaction while increasing profitability for the industry. Surprisingly, very few startups were attempting this challenge so we decided to take it on.”

BMW Korea as the Flagship Partner

Currently, EPIKAR’s DMS platform has been adopted by BMW Korea and its official dealer network.

Based on the DMS architecture, EPIKAR provides the BTS (BMW Test-drive Solution) platform, enabling more than 70 BMW showrooms nationwide to operate the entire test drive journey through mobile services.

In addition, EPIKAR supplies the IWS (Intelligent Workshop System) a smart after-sales management solution that allows 79 BMW service centers nationwide to monitor vehicle intake, repair progress, and delivery status in real time.

By integrating these platforms, EPIKAR continuously accumulates large volumes of operational data, which are then analyzed to further enhance service quality and system intelligence.

Targeting the Global Market

EPIKAR has now set its sights firmly on international expansion.

Rather than focusing solely on Korea’s large-enterprise centric market, the company believes the United States and Southeast Asia regions dominated by independent and mid-sized dealer groups are particularly well suited for its digital solutions.

The U.S. market, in particular, offers an ideal testing ground to validate the effectiveness, scalability, and adaptability of EPIKAR’s platform in diverse dealership environments.

CEO Han, who travels overseas almost weekly to pursue global partnerships, remarked,
“I hope we’ll be able to share some good news soon.”

Beyond Partial Digitalization

While EPIKAR currently supports digital transformation within selected dealership operations, the company’s long-term vision extends much further.

Its ultimate goal is to enable end-to-end digital transformation across the entire automotive transaction lifecycle from vehicle search and purchase contracts to ownership management and eventual resale.

Throughout this process, EPIKAR aims to maximize value not only for its dealership clients, but also for end consumers.

“The automotive distribution market will undergo even deeper digital transformation in the years ahead,” Han said.
“If EPIKAR’s solutions contribute meaningfully to industry innovation and lead to tangible benefits for all market participants, then our business will have achieved true success.”

He added,
“I see no reason why EPIKAR’s platform cannot succeed both domestically and globally. We intend to keep pushing forward.”