Blue Bell bounces back
BLUE Bell BMW remains on the hunt for a flagship new site after “riding the rollercoaster” over the past two years.
Accounts for the year to March 31 show that Blue Bell Wilmslow Ltd – its main trading company – returned to profit during the year, despite largely flat sales of around £53.8m (2009: £53.7m).
Its pre-tax profit of £737,000 was an improbvement of more than £1m on the prio year’s loss of £313,000.
The company, which owns garages at Crewe and Altrincham alongside its headoffice at Wilsmlow, has “bounced straight back like a squash ball” after a tough year in 2008/09, according to finance director Anthony Crowe.
He told TheBusinessDesk.com that managing director Sue Brownson, who owns the business alongside husband Chris and his family, had the advantage of years of experience in running the operation and had seen the business through past recessions.
As a result, the firm decided not to cut large numbers of staff when sales fell off as it recognised the need to maintain premium standards of service.
“As an owner Sue took a longer term view than a manager would,” said Crowe. “We retained as many staff as we could.”
The firm did cut some staff in certain areas such as valeters, which meant that overall staff numbers fell to an average of 123 during the year. Brownson said that posts which were cut were in “non-customer facing areas”, and added that a sharper management focus on costs had improved the businesss.
“As a buisness, we’re stronger now that in pre-2008,” said Brownson. “People are still looking for value and they’re looking for a deal, but they’re still looking,” she said.
She added that the firm had the twin advantages of operating in a prosperous area and selling a marque which remained very popular with consumers.
BMW’s 3-series was the fourth-best selling model in October, and both the 3-series and Mini ranges are in the top ten sellers of 2010, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
The company had planned to invest upt ot £12m on a new 5.5 acre site next to the Etrop Grange hotel near Manchester Airport as part of a wider development that would also have seen 60 new homes being built on the site. However, the subsequent collapse of the housing market meant that the developmentstalled.
“We are looking, though, and hopefully we will find something soon. We intend to move as soon as we find a suitable site,” said Brownson.
