Member Article

Knaresborough's Vantage Motors acquires Škoda dealership boosting turnover by £8 million

Vantage Motor Group has completed the acquisition of David Ian ŠKODA in Morecambe – its first ŠKODA dealership – boosting group turnover by £8 million from £215 million to £223 million and increasing its network of sites to 21.

The move sees ŠKODA join Toyota, Kia, Citroen, Honda, Hyundai and Lexus in Vantage’s range and follows hot on the heels of the Group extending its Honda penetration last month with the acquisition of Honda Bradford.

The ŠKODA brand has undergone a major transformation in recent years to become a value premium marque. It hasexperienced five years of record growth, culminating in sales of 76,027 cars in the UK last year (some 10,000 more than in 2013), and over one million cars worldwide.

The dealership will be rebranded as Vantage ŠKODA later this year and will undergo significant redevelopment to reflect the manufacturer’s new corporate identity. All staff are being retained.

Mark Robinson, managing director of Vantage Motor Group, said: “We are delighted to acquire our first ŠKODA dealership. The ŠKODA brand has gone from strength to strength and its increasing appeal in the eyes of buyers complements the strong values and focus on customer service that are consistent with the Vantage name.”

Heidi Cartledge, the head of Customer Quality and Network Development for ŠKODA UK, commented: “ŠKODA UK is delighted to welcome Vantage into our network.

“We believe that there is a great fit between these businesses as we have both enjoyed an exciting period of growth built upon delivering great customer service.

“We are also really looking forward to seeing the site in Morecombe when the redevelopment and new Corporate Identity is complete later this year.

“This will give customers the perfect environment to experience exciting new products like the What Car, Car of the Year Fabia and the stunning new Superb which arrives in September.”

Vantage was advised by Walker Morris Leeds, Grant Thornton Leeds and Colliers CRE. The deal was brokered by UHY in Manchester.

Paul Daly, partner at UHY said: “The deal continues the growth of Vantage with their first acquisition of a VW Group brand. Based on other transactions we are working on at present it appears the sector consolidation will continue strongly through 2015.”

Over the past year Vantage Motor Group’s turnover has grown from £65 million to more than £220 million. The group employs 500 people and has increased its number of sites from seven in Yorkshire and Lancashire to 21 across the North of England and the West Midlands.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .