Guildford: Car dealership motoring after LSH deal

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TBM Team

Up to 45 new jobs are being created in Guildford following Richmond Motor Group’s £1.35 million deal to buy a prime site which became available when a truck dealership collapsed.

The company, which already has dealerships in Portsmouth, Southampton and Bognor Regis, has acquired a 2.1 acre site at Slyfield Industrial Estate, national property consultants Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH) revealed.

Richmond Motor Group has earmarked the site for a major investment, creating a new state-of-the-art Hyundai car dealership.

Charles Wood, director of industrial and logistics at LSH in Guildford, secured the deal on behalf of administrators Duff and Phelps. The property was put on the market last year following the collapse of Iveco truck dealers, Grays of Guildford.

Wood said: “This is a prime motor trade site fronting Moorfield Road on the Slyfield Industrial Estate and it is the ideal location for Richmond Motor Group’s new venture. There are already several major motor dealerships located adjacent to this site so the new Hyundai dealership will be in very good company.

“After a long period in the doldrums there are now clear signs of a recovery in the motor trade property market. This is the first significant automotive industry transaction for some years in the Guildford area and it is clear that the Slyfield Estate is a magnet for the industry.”

The new Hyundai dealership has already opened to the public but three phases of work are in place to transform the site. LSH’s building consultancy team has been appointed to co-ordinate the substantial refurbishment programme, which includes re-cladding and complete refurbishment to provide a modern retail outlet of about 21,000 sq ft. Work is expected to be completed by November.

Michael Nobes, managing director of Richmond Motor Group, said the dealership would remain open while work takes place to build a new 12,000sq ft showroom – tripling the size of the existing showroom. Additional workshops and a valet area, totalling around 9,000 sq ft, will also be created.

Already, 21 people from the local area have been employed by Richmond Motor Group at the Guildford site, including trainee sales people and technicians.

TBM Team