Swansway Group comes of age

Swansway Group, a family owned motor dealer group, based in North West England which owns Preston Audi, Blackburn Audi and Volkswagen Van Centre Lancashire are delighted to announce they have reached their milestone 18th birthday this September!

Swansway Group is the latest successful chapter for founder and chairman Michael Smyth, who has an auspicious career in the motor industry spanning more than 50 years.

From the purchase of a business comprising two wooden huts for repairing vehicles and two petrol pumps in 1967, to currently leading a business of over 1,000 staff with a turnover of £770m, Michael Smyth’s ever-present entrepreneurial spirit, hard work and dedication, combined with his instinctive understanding of the importance of the customer experience, has led to his consistently outstanding performance in a variety of enterprises.

Michael’s previous achievements include:

Revolutionising the selling of fuel, both in price and in customer service commitment for petrol stations. Identifying the opportunity presented by the introduction of Toyota to the UK market and establishing RRG Group which became Europe’s largest Toyota dealer group. Founding Elton Vehicle Contacts, a contact hire and leasing business that grew at a vast rate and is now part of Lex Autolease and EMaC; an automotive service plan business that allowed drivers to pay monthly for their vehicle maintenance, making it easier to budget and keep motoring affordable.  EMaC was sold to venture capitalists in 2012 and continues to be the largest service plan supplier in the UK.

Currently Michael leads Swansway Group which has 23 dealerships and one accident repair centre, from Birmingham in the Midlands to Carlisle in the North.  It represents Volkswagen, Audi, Land Rover, Jaguar, SEAT, CUPRA, Peugeot, Honda and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, plus operates 6 Motor Match non-franchise locations, with plans for further development and expansion in the pipeline.

The special birthday occasion was marked with celebratory cupcakes, delivered to each team member across every site, for everyone to enjoy.

But an 18th birthday is not the only reason why 2021 has already been a very noteworthy year for the family owned and operated business, with:

Michael Smyth, chair and founder of Swansway Group, receiving a coveted Lifetime Achievement Award in the Car Dealer Used Car Awards in February. Also in February, Swansway Group showed their support to families in Oldham and Bolton, with a gift of 24 Hewlett Packard laptops, to children who otherwise will continue to struggle with access to education, both during the lockdowns and going forwards. The Group reported record pre-tax profits rise of 155% to £10.2 million for 2020, in April. They launched a group-wide initiative, to plan to change every single light bulb across the business, both indoor and out, to more energy efficient LED lighting options to improve sustainability within the Group in June. Also in June, the Group launched its first Fast Track Sales Executive programme. The Group recruited talented individuals from sectors other than the motor trade, and began “fast-tracking” their training and development into the motor industry. Enabling works commencing on the proposed £9 million development in Oldham, of a state-of-the-art new location for an Oldham Volkswagen Commercial Vehicle and passenger car retailer. This project marked 42 years of construction projects undertaken with the support of Pulmann Associates Architects, in August.

Michael Smyth said: “I’d like to thank all those who have contributed to the Swansway success over the years, both team members and customers.

"Despite changing and sometimes challenging circumstances, I am very pleased that we have continued to deliver service excellence across all the areas of our business. Our continuing positive performance is a great testament to all the hard work and commitment shown by our teams, and I am very much looking forward to the next exciting chapters.”

Image: John Smyth Director, David Smyth Director, Michael Smyth Chairman and Peter Smyth Director