The North East’s largest family-owned & operated car dealership group is expanding its brand portfolio by bringing two iconic automotive brands back to the region.
Wingrove Motor Company has secured exclusive contracts with Alfa Romeo and Jeep as part of the company’s ongoing expansion plans.
Wingrove, which will celebrate its centenary next year, is also adding servicing contracts for Fiat, Abarth and Fiat Professional to its dealerships, with the new names set to take their places alongside Citroën, Peugeot and DS at the firm’s Newcastle West Road and Silverlink dealerships from next month.
Around half a dozen new jobs will initially be created through the new contracts, with the arrival of the new brands expected to help the business increase its turnover by at least 25 per cent over the next year, to around £60m.
The existing and new brands are all part of the stable of brands owned by leading global automaker Stellantis.
Josh Parker, managing director at Wingrove Motor Company, who is the fifth generation of his family to manage the business, says: “The reintroduction of the iconic Alfa Romeo and Jeep brands to the region isn’t just an expression of confidence in Wingrove, but also in the North East as a whole.
“We’re strengthening our long-term relationship with Stellantis and its brands after their senior team saw at first hand how we deliver the high-quality customer experience that is the basis of our long-term commercial success.
“We’ve been in discussions over several months about how best to shape the next phase of Wingrove’s evolution, and we’re hugely excited to be adding such outstanding names to the range of vehicles we sell and service.”
Wingrove currently employs around 90 people across its Silverlink, Newcastle West Road and Cramlington dealerships and service centres, and expects that figure to pass three figures before the end of the year.
Alfa Romeo will be located alongside Wingrove’s range of new DS cars at the Newcastle West Road dealership, which will also offer servicing for the Fiat & Abarth brands, while Jeep will join Wingrove’s award-winning Citroën and Peugeot brands along with servicing for Fiat Professional at the Silverlink site.
Josh Parker continues: “Introducing Alfa Romeo and Jeep will have a significant impact on our commercial performance, with the new North East jobs that we’re creating now likely to be followed by more as we get everything fully bedded in.
“Wingrove Motor Company has been a constant part of the North East automotive scene for almost one hundred years and we couldn’t ask for a better way to be leading up to our centenary.”
Maria Grazia Davino, group managing director at Stellantis UK, adds: “We are delighted to have Wingrove Motor Company add Alfa Romeo and Jeep to their existing portfolio of brands from Stellantis together with after-sales support for Fiat, Abarth and Fiat Professional.
“Their almost century-long legacy and dedication to great customer service reflect the values of excellence that we look for in our Retailer partners.”