'300 Mercedes Benz jobs at risk' if Shrewsbury plan refused
More than 300 jobs could be under threat across Shropshire and the West Midlands if plans for a new £3 million car dealership in Shrewsbury are refused.
Plans have been unveiled for a new Mercedes Benz dealership next to the Rural Enterprise Centre, in Stafford Drive.
The application has been made to Shropshire Council by Warwick Holdings Ltd, a family-owned motor dealer group which has seven Mercedes-Benz dealerships in the Midlands, including Shrewsbury, through its subsidiary company Drayton Group.
If plans are approved, it would see the relocation of 45 staff from the existing town site on Battlefield Road as well as the creation of 15 jobs. The lease on the current site expires in June 2014.
But company bosses say if the new Shrewsbury dealership fails to win planning permission, it could lead to the collapse of all seven sites in the franchise and uncertainty for more than 300 jobs – including sites in Walsall, Wolverhampton, Stourbridge and Worcester.
