New jobs for Sheffield as Yorkshire Bank helps car dealership move up a gear

23/10/07

SEVENTY new jobs have been created in South Yorkshire with the launch of a new multi-million pound car dealership.

The jobs, which are expected to more than double in the next three years, have been created by The Car People with its new £10.5m showroom on a former industrial site on the outskirts of Sheffield.

The new dealership, which, with stock, represents an initial £18.5m investment has been launched with support funding from Yorkshire Bank's Doncaster Financial Solutions Centre (FSC).

A £35m turnover is expected by the new dealership in its first year and this is forecast to rise to £80m by 2010.

The new 36,000 sq ft showroom which, with outside space, has the capacity to display 1,000 cars, is the first South Yorkshire base for The Car People since it was launched in Wakefield seven years ago by Yorkshire car sales entrepreneur, Martyn Carnell.

The decision to launch in Sheffield follows the success of the Wakefield dealership and a showroom in Ashton, Manchester, which opened three years go.        

The business concentrates on selling new and used cars up to three years old with a maximum of 50,000 miles on the clock.

Chairman and managing director, Martyn Carnell, launched The Car People after selling his motorcycle and Yorkshire car dealership, The Carnell Group in (when?) when it comprised six national motor cycle dealerships, 14 car dealerships in Yorkshire and Humberside, 780 staff and a £180m turnover.

He says: "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.

"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. Car ownership is still among most people's main aspirations, particularly young people who have just passed their driving test.

"The Carnell Group launched in Doncaster 1973 with support from Yorkshire Bank and it is good to be back in South Yorkshire and to be maintaining our partnership with the same bank."

A senior partner at Yorkshire Bank's Doncaster FSC, Andrew McKenna, says: "The FSC concept, which brings together different banking disciplines under one roof, was devised to meet the needs of entrepreneurs. We supported Martyn Carnell with the launch of The Car People in Wakefield and Manchester and are pleased to be associated with creating new jobs in South