Sheffield car showroom creates 70 new jobs
SEVENTY new jobs have been created in Sheffield with the launch
of a £10.5m pound car supermarket showroom.
And the number of people employed by The Car People is anticipated
to more than double in the next three years.
The Sheffield Airport Business Park-based business is projecting
a £35m turnover in its first year of business rising to
£80m by 2010.
The new venture is headed by Yorkshire car sales entrepreneur
Martyn Carnell, who headed the hugely successful Carnell Group
before its sale in 1997.
The showroom is the first in South Yorkshire since it was launched
in Wakefield seven years ago, and has the capacity to display 1,000
cars.
The car supermarket concentrates on selling new and used cars up to
four years old with a maximum of 50,000 miles.
Mr Carnell, who is managing director and chairman of the firm, said
that the decision to open in Sheffield followed the success of the
Wakefield business and a second location in Manchester, which
opened three years ago.
“With The Car People, we wanted to create a new approach to
selling cars and our launch in Sheffield is testimony to its
continuing success,” he said.
“Our initial research created a demographic of potential
customers and there are plenty meeting this profile in South
yorkshire to give us real confidence in this venture.”
The Car People was launched after Mr Carnell sold his Yorkshire car
dealership and motorcycle group Carnell Motor Group in 1997.
At the time it comprised six national motorcycle dealerships, 14
car dealerships in Yorkshire and Humberside, and employed 780 staff
with a £180m turnover.
Yorkshire Bank was involved in the group's launch back in 1973,
and more than 30 years later is still supporting Mr Carnell by
supplying funding for The Car People's £18.5m initial
investment in Sheffield through its Doncaster Financial Solutions
Centre (FSC).
Andrew McKenna, senior partner at Yorkshire Bank's Doncaster
FSC said:
“We supported Mr Carnell with the launch of The Car People in
Wakefield and Manchester, and are please to be associated with
creating new jobs in South Yorkshire.”
