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Hardie perennia
Page 72
Page 73
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Few dealerships can match the presence of Thomas Hardie Used Vehicle Sales in Viddlewich. Over the past 14 years it's gone from strength to strength...
It's a twist of fate that the previous occupants of Road Beta, Middlewich can cast a watchful eye in the direction of its new inhabitants,Thomas Hardie Used Vehicle Sales (UVS).This, you see, is the old ERF site.
Overseeing the rise and rise of UVS is MD Graham Smith who returned to the company in 1990 to start up the used vehicle arm. In his first 12 months he sold 65 vehicles from the original site on Brooks Lane.
By 1994, when UVS became a limited company, it was selling over 280 units a year. In 1998 the company joined up with Volvo dealership Manchester Truck and Bus, expanding the group to eight sites in and around Manchester and Liverpool. This doubled the scale of the business, Smith reports, and by 2001 Brooks Lane was bursting at the seams. No one wanted to move out of the prime location in Middlewich but good fortune offered a tailormade site at the bottom of Road Beta — the old ERF site. But there was still one major change to come.
The Thomas Hardie (Group), transformed from Lancashire Trucks by Ken Strolin in 1985, was the subject of a management buy-out in February 2003, when Smith and four fellow directors took control from a retiring Strolin.That year they sold more than 600 used vehicles.
The success of the company is down to the relationship it has built up with its customers, but it also helps to have the entire used stock on one site. With good motorway links that site is also easy to get to.
Service matters It's taken Smith 14 years to build the kind of trust with customers that produces 60% repeat custom. He realises that many operators who buy Volvos don't need to be won over by the vehicle — they want a Volvo anyway — but by the service offered by the dealer.
"We profile our business as flexible to the customer by catering for all their transport needs,he says.
What makes his role easier is that all Volvo products returning to the used market do so within the confines of the dealer network: "Volvo has all the trucks, which benefits the dealer and customer. We know how it's been used in its first life. Around 70% of vehicles have a level of service history" ibis control has helped keep prices up as both Volvo and Thomas Hardie have done their bit to turn the used sector into a more professional business over the past four years.
The company sells nationally and into Ireland but concentrates on the northwest of England; most customers run up to 20 vehicles. As well as offering Volvo backed warranties the firm offers its reputation for square dealing. "The buyer can rely on the people selling the vehicle," says Smith. "That's important."
The site has a six-bay workshop which operates 24/7. U VS also offers a paint shop, brake testing and tachograph calibrations and has a vehicle movement operation.There's even a Volvo finance rep on site who can give approval within four hours.
On the forecourt
First up is a 4x2 FH12 420 sleeper which has been brought in through Volvo Contract Services. Since its registration in April 2001 it has clocked up 471,000km. Features include two fuel tanks with a 1,100-litre capacity and a sliding fifth wheel. It's up for 129,950 (ex-VAT).
Secondhand two-axle tractors are in short supply because lopsided VED rates have pushed operators towards three axles. But UVS has an FM12 340 4x2 from the Comet fleet. It looks ideal for own-account and medium-weight haulage contractors. Registered in December 1999 it's clocked up more than 855,000km and carries a price tag of £12,950 (ex-VAT).
While fleet-spec wagons make up a fair percentage of the stock there are plenty of more specialised vehicles on the forecourt, including an 8x4 FM12 380hp tipper with a 14-speed box and sleeper cab.
T301 J7C was run by an owner-driver who cashed it in to run attics. It has a steel muckaway Thompsons body which looks to be in good nick, and has about 371,000km on the clock.Yours for £28,950 (ex-VAT), including a selection of pro-Welsh stickers.
• Contact details:01606 830100 www.thomas-hardie.co.uk