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I(T1 [ s i ll 11 I li i F1 S 1 piel . 1 k

7th January 2010, Page 52
7th January 2010
Page 52
Page 52, 7th January 2010 — I(T1 [ s i ll 11 I li i F1 S 1 piel . 1 k
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

With so many vans bought by builders, not to mention electricians, carpenters, plasterers and so on, has Broadway been hit by the downturn in the building industry? Not at ail, says Griffiths.

"Quite a few people who have been laid off by the big firms have taken their redundancy money and used it to set up in business on their own," he adds. "As a consequence, we've had a huge number of start-ups coming in with cash to spend.

"The recession has produced a new generation of self-employed people and they need vehicles," he continues. "They don't want to commit to something that's brand-new, so they buy something that's three years old instead and see what happens during their first two or three years of trading.

"Bear in mind too that the construction industry is by no means completely dead. Some sectors remain very active."

That is one reason why Broadway has remained buoyant. Another is the level of repeat business the company enjoys, plus the extent to which it is attracting customers who previously bought brand-new vans or trucks, Griffiths says.

"They're telling us that they want, say, a three-year-old 7.5-tonne tipper because they can't stretch to a new one at present," he says.

That is partly because new prices are increasing due to the slide of the pound against the euro, he contends. "By contrast, retail used prices are holding steady, neither falling nor rising," he observes.

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