The Centre for Automotive Management at Loughborough University will be responsible for forming programmes on automotive retail, which will then be rolled out to the dealer group's international businesses.
This month the first 16 UK managers will begin working towards a range of qualifications from university certificates to masters' degrees.
They will then be joined by managers from Inchcape's overseas businesses throughout the rest of the year.
Joanne Smith, Inchcape head of talent management, said: “When we started to develop the concept of our retail academy, we looked at a number of different potential partners.
“Loughborough University stood out as the only provider who had both the theoretical and real world experience that is required to make a difference in a very tough business.”
Professor Jim Saker of Loughborough University said the partnership would help reinforce the global reach of the centre.