INDEPENDENT car retailer Halliwell Jones Group has completed a major expansion phase with the opening of a £5.5m service centre in Chester.
The group, which has five car dealerships in the North West of England and Wales, used a £7.6m loan granted by the Manchester corporate banking centre (CBC) of The Co-operative Bank to extend and improve dealerships in Chester, Southport and Warrington.
The most significant part of the expansion phase completed recently with the opening of a state-of-the-art service centre and body shop in Chester on a new 4.3 acre plot.
Featuring 26 service and two MOT bays, the new site increases the company’s service capacity by more than 250%.
Over the last 12 months the company employee numbers have increased by 10% as the group prepared for the new operation.
The new site features a three lane internal drive-through reception area for customers, who are then welcomed by Halliwell Jones staff, and has a 45 foot video wall to keep customers informed of all the latest products available.
Halliwell Jones Group finance director Glyn Howes said: “We are very grateful for the support of The Co-operative Bank and the team at the Manchester corporate banking centre, who have backed our business strategy.
“This is an exciting time for the group, in particular with the expansion at Chester.
“Success can bring certain challenges and the new development at Chester allows us to deliver the excellent quality of customer service that we aim for.
“We are now operating more efficiently, but also creating more jobs. We now employ over 350 staff, with turnover expected to break the £240m barrier in 2013.”
