ONE of the country's longest-running Vauxhall dealerships has been taken over by a regional motor group.

Picador, which has a franchise in Winchester and a site in Chandler's Ford, was acquired by Snows for an undisclosed sum.

Southampton-headquartered Snows will add the Vauxhall sites to its network, taking its number of dealerships across the south to 50.

Around 90 staff from Picador's Sholing and Chandler's Ford sites will join Snows.

Picador is one of Vauxhall's longest-serving retailers and providers of authorised services and repairs in the country. It is also a used car seller and an authorised service and repairs centre for Renault and Dacia.

READ MORE: Picador Vauxhall closes its Winchester site after firm bought out

Neil McCue, chief operating officer for Snows, said: "We are very excited to take on this great business and warmly welcome Picador staff to Snows."

He added: "It's not difficult to see why Picador is a great addition to the Snows family.

"Like Snows, Picador was established 60 years ago with a well-respected name in the region and loyal customers, who we hope will choose to enjoy the same excellent standards and service from us.

"This exciting acquisition enables us to offer new and used Vauxhall cars and vans and used car sales, plus repairs and servicing for both the Renault and Dacia brands.

"Together with our strengthened position with Stellantis (owners of Vauxhall, FCA and Peugeot) this will mean even more choice of quality vehicles for our customers."

Prior to the acquisition of Picador, Snows represented 17 brands across 48 dealerships, with three approved service centres, 12 multi-franchise used car centres and a stand-alone accident repair centre, employing a total of 993 staff.

Snows formally acquired Picador on Monday, August 1.

Picador's trading name will change to Snows on Thursday, September 1.

Family-owned Snows celebrated 60 years of trading earlier this year and reported its most successful year to date, with a car sold every 26 minutes.

It began as an office supplies business in 1962, with its then-owner, the late Geoff Snow, moving into the motor trade by opening a Toyota business in 1979.

 

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