Shukers set for £4m showrooms overhaul

In the latest demonstration of the buoyancy of the new and used car market, the Shrewsbury-based company is to kick off its investment drive by spending £3 million on building a new dealership in Ludlow.

It will carry the latest approved Land Rover branding, and will be among the first outlets in the country built to the growing marque's latest specifications.

Based off Parys Road, the new dealership will be around 100 yards from the company's current outlet.

Work will begin at the end of April, and is expected to last for around 10 months, to be completed next February.

Its construction will be followed by a further £1 million investment in the company's Shrewsbury site, in Battlefield Road, which will also be brought up to the latest branding.

Group managing director Vernon Hogg said the move was on the back of growth in Land Rover sales both for the group and on a global scale over the last six years.

"It's on the back of Land Rover investing globally, in new markets and in manufacturing and engine plants such as alongside the M54," he said.

"The Ludlow site was built in 1983, and we have now outgrown it in terms of its facilities, parking and display space. It's obvious we needed to move to a larger location and reinvest in the brand.

"The whole look is going to be based on Land Rover's brand, which is something that's happening across the country. By 2018 most facilities will be developed to look like the Ludlow site will."

Shukers has also developed other brands such as Isuzu and Ssangyong as it bids to grow its presence within Shropshire, and says it will retain the existing Land Rover site in Ludlow to be refitted for another marque, to be announced later.

The company has increased its volumes from around 600 to more than 1,200 new and used vehicles in the Land Rover division alone since 2008, as the market for cars has continued its upward curve.

That has also been reflected in strong growth in the overall company's turnover over the same period, meaning the dealership chain is now well ahead of it position when the country entered recession, despite the gloomy wider climate.

It has also grown its staff over the same period, from 62 to 82, and more could be brought in once the Ludlow development is complete, as it will create extra office and workshop space, as well as more room for sales of both new and used cars.

Mr Hogg said: "We don't plan to go outside Shropshire – we have been Shropshire based for many years – but a lot is happening in terms of expansion and development.

"It's all massively exciting, and all the staff here are very much part of that. They see huge potential going forward."

He added: "Our volumes have increased over the last six years in new and used vehicles, and that is why we have outgrown our facility in Ludlow.

"Our workshop isn't big enough, we don't have enough parking facilities, and with new car ranges coming out we need more space."