Wales’ leading used car sales company is set to open Europe’s largest used car showroom in Coventry as part of growth plans outside its home ground.
The used car supermarket group, trading as Trade Centre UK in its new more Easterly territory, will accommodate 1,000 cars with 400 housed in the giant indoor showroom in the former premises of Coventry Leekes furniture store.
The Coventry dealership will be Trade Centre UK’s fifth showroom and will employ around 140 members of staff from the local area.
Headquartered in Neath, The Trade Centre Wales originally had showrooms in Merthyr and Cardiff North before taking the decision to branch out into the rest of the UK, opening the first Trade Centre UK site in Wednesbury, in April 2017.
Andy Coulthurst, CEO of The Trade Centre Wales, said: “As a proud Welsh business, we’re so pleased to be able to expand into the rest of the UK on such a large scale.
“Our continued success in Wales has allowed us to take the leap and along with expansion plans, we’re committed to maintaining the same level of service and value our customers expect across the group.
“The rapid growth we’ve experienced in such a short space of time is down to the hard work and commitment of the team and we’re thrilled to open Europe’s largest ever used car showroom.
“We’re a recognised name in Wales, having been established here for almost 20 years but as we expand into new territories we’re investing in increasing our brand awareness to make sure we’re as well regarded in England as we are in Wales, working hard to establish a UK brand.
“After our success in Wednesbury where the 12-acre store sold more than 300 cars a week since launch, Coventry was a clear choice to expand our footprint in the region, which will naturally deliver efficiencies for the business”.
Compared to 2015 the business will more than treble its revenue from £70m to £250m.
Andy continued: “As we move into new regions outside of Wales we want to ensure our values remain. Similar to the sites in Wales, we’ll continue to engage in community projects such as grassroots sports teams and local initiatives.”