Five years after opening their first garage and parts department for Japanese cars outside of London, specialist car tuner Whifbitz have moved into a larger unit on Severnbridge Industrial Estate in Caldicot to enable the company to accommodate the increase in demand for their services.
Moving from a 2,000 sq ft unit on the busy industrial estate into a 5,000 sq ft workshop/trade counter building will provide Whifbitz with the space they need to service and modify a comprehensive range of Japanese performance cars. In addition, the company will also be able to increase the range of OEM parts they stock and those they fabricate themselves in-house using state of the art engineering tools and software.
Explaining their decision to lease the larger unit in the same location, Paul Whiffin, director of Whifbitz said, “Since opening our Caldicot workshop in 2013, we have been able to build and develop a customer base throughout South Wales and the South West of England. The location is perfect to provide easy access from the motorway network and the additional space will enable us to manage this growth effectively and take on more work. The company is also installing the only Dyno machine within 60 mins of the garage that functions as a rolling road to enable their mechanics to tune and record the power output of the cars along with diagnostic and R&D usage to test new products.
“Our customers are passionate about their cars and love to have a look around the workshop and view the extensive range of parts we stock and manufacture here. We primarily work on Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Lexus vehicles and have gained a national reputation for our expertise on the iconic Toyota Supra.”
Dan Smith, director for M4 Property Consultants who negotiated the move on behalf of the landlord Pro Investments said, “The success enjoyed by Whifbitz is thoroughly deserved. We helped them move into their original unit on Severnbridge Industrial Estate and they have worked tirelessly to establish their business as a leader in their niche market. They are fantastic tenants and we were very happy to help them find larger premises.”
A spokesperson for Asset Manager, FI Real Estate Management said, “It’s great to have existing tenants expand within our portfolio and we are delighted to help Paul and his team grow the business. With the Severnbridge tolls being removed at the end of the year, we continue to receive demand from the Bristol side of the bridge and now only have a few units remaining on the estate, which we aim to secure tenants for in the coming months.”