A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject.(October 2019) |
Park's Motor Group | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Owner | Private |
Locale | Scotland |
Chief executive | Douglas Park |
Headquarters | Hamilton, Scotland, UK |
Website | www.parks.uk.com |
Operation | |
Began operation | 1971 |
Park's Motor Group is a private family-owned business which is one of the largest privately owned motor dealership groups in Scotland, representing 26 manufacturers. They are also partners in the Motability scheme, offering cars to disabled road users.
In addition to motor vehicle retailing, the company has a luxury coach hire service under the name Park's of Hamilton, and operates scheduled services in Scotland and England.
Park's Motor Group also operates four petrol forecourts, two large body repair centres in Hillington and East Kilbride, and a fast-fit outlet as well as one of the largest trade parts wholesaling operations in Scotland.
Douglas Park founded the business in 1971 initially as a small, three-coach operation. In 1977, the company diversified into the motor trade with their first Datsun franchise in Hamilton, before adding a second a year later in Strathaven. From this point on, the business began to grow in the motor trade and by 1986 were appointed agents for Honda and BMW. In 1992, Park's Motor Group opened the UK's first multi-franchise complex in East Kilbride which featured Citroën, Fiat, Honda, Kia, Nissan, Renault and Suzuki.
In 1998, investment in Ayrshire led to the acquisition of seven more showrooms. Subsequently, in 2003, Park's Motor Group completed the development of Scotland's first P.A.G (Premier Automotive Group) site which added Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover to a growing list of franchises. [1]
In 2004, Park's Motor Group opened a Renault dealership in Fife. In 2006, the company acquired Henry Bros BMW businesses in Glasgow and Hillington, securing their position as Scotland's largest BMW group. In 2009, Park's Motor Group became Scotland's only official Overfinch distributor, which specialises in bespoke Range Rovers.
In January 2011, Park's Motor Group extended its portfolio by opening Saab, in Ayr. 2012 saw further expansion as their Renault Irvine site was developed adding Fiat, Nissan, Suzuki, and Dacia to the site as well as Honda.
To complement their BMW dealerships Park's Motor Group added Douglas Park BMW Motorrad, which specialises in the sale of new and used motorcycles as well as an after-sales operation. 2013 saw the opening of another Honda dealership in Ayr.
Business was strengthened once again with the addition of a second Citroën and Kia dealership in Coatbridge, in 2014. In the same year, they added another prestigious brand to their portfolio with the addition of Maserati. [2]
In January 2015, Park's Motor Group opened McLaren Glasgow, the first and only McLaren dealership in Scotland. [3] [4] McLaren Glasgow offers the entire range of new McLaren cars as well as pre-owned models and service facilities. McLaren Glasgow was named the brand's European Retailer of the Year 2015, 2016 and 2018. [5] [6] [7] In 2018, Park's Motor Group opened its second McLaren dealership in Leeds. [8]
In January 2016, Park's Motor Group completed the acquisition of Macrae & Dick. [9] [10] The acquisition led to the introduction of 12 new dealerships, including BMW and MINI in Stirling, Land Rover and Jaguar in Inverness and Honda in both Inverness and Aberdeen. As well as adding to their existing reputation, the takeover allowed for new partnerships to form with Ford, Mazda and Toyota, which are now represented in Inverness, Elgin, Perth and Stirling.
In March 2022, Park's Motor Group completed the acquisition of Border Motor Group. [11] The acquisition led to the introduction of 3 new dealerships, including Toyota, Lexus, Skoda and Hyundai in Carlisle, Dumfries and St. Boswells.
Park's Motor Group operates a national network of car dealerships, offering a wide range of new and used cars. They offer volume brands such as Kia and Renault, as well as a number of high-end dealerships including Bentley and McLaren. Park's Motor Group has car dealerships throughout Scotland. including Glasgow, Hillington, Ayr, Irvine, Hamilton, Coatbridge, Motherwell, East Kilbride, Bathgate, Stirling, Perth, Dunfermline, Aberdeen, Inverness and Elgin. They also operate a McLaren dealership in Leeds. The 26 manufacturers offered are:
Park's Motor Group are a Motability Premier Partner and offer 18 manufacturers on Motability. The Motability scheme is an initiative to provide disabled people and war pensioners access to a new car; the scheme also extends to those who suffer from cognitive behavioural disorders. Park's Motor Group have Motability specialists at dealerships throughout Scotland, including Glasgow, Ayrshire, West Lothian, Fife, Perth, Aberdeen and the Highlands.
Park's of Hamilton are Scotland's leading luxury coach operators with in excess of 120 coaches, which caters for both business and leisure travel throughout Britain and Europe. [12] In 1996 Park's of Hamilton expanded with the acquisition of Trathens Travel Services, based in Plymouth. In late 2009, the Trathens branding was dropped in favour of the Park's of Hamilton branding. The company provides VIP coaches for most Central Scotland based Scottish Premiership football teams, including Rangers, Celtic and the Scottish National Football Team.
Park's of Hamilton operates express coach services under contract to National Express from London Victoria Coach Station to Plymouth, Newquay, Penzance, Manchester, Blackpool and Aberdeen. It also operates services on behalf of Megabus and Scottish Citylink. In 2008 Parks purchased the Glasgow to Aberdeen and Edinburgh to Inverness services of Scottish Citylink. They also operate the Glasgow to Dundee Scottish Citylink service.
Scottish Citylink is a long-distance express coach operator in Scotland and Ireland and formerly England. The company was formed as a subsidiary of Scottish Transport Group in March 1985. It is operated as a 63/37 joint venture between ComfortDelGro and Stagecoach.
Eastern Scottish Omnibuses Ltd. was a bus and coach operator based in Edinburgh, Scotland and a subsidiary of the Scottish Bus Group. Eastern Scottish was formed in June 1985 from the main part of Scottish Omnibuses Ltd., which had itself traded as 'Eastern Scottish' since the 1960s. Following privatisation in 1990 the company traded as 'SMT' reviving the original name of the company. It operated until 1994, when it became part of GRT Bus Group plc.
Highland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd was formed as a bus operating subsidiary of the Scottish Transport Group in June 1985 from Highland Omnibuses Ltd, and operated until October 1995 when the company was split into two - Highland Bus & Coach and Highland Country Buses. The companies have since remerged and operate today as Highland Country Buses. It is now Stagecoach Highlands.
Automobile was an American automobile magazine founded in 1986 by a group of former Car and Driver employees, led by David E. Davis with support from Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, using the credo No Boring Cars. From 2014-202, Automobile had been absorbed by the Motor Trend Group.
Stagecoach West Scotland is an operating region of Stagecoach UK Bus, comprising Western Buses Ltd based in Ayr, Scotland.
The Geneva International Motor Show was an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva.
The 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 61st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship, which began on 18 March and ended on 21 October after seventeen events. The Drivers' Championship was won by Ferrari driver Kimi Räikkönen by one point at the final race of the season, making Räikkönen the third Finnish driver to take the title. An appeal by McLaren regarding the legality of some cars in the final race could have altered the championship standings, but on 16 November, the appeal was rejected by the International Court of Appeal, confirming the championship results. Räikkönen entered the final race in third position in the drivers' standings, but emerged as champion after the chequered flag, a feat first accomplished by Giuseppe Farina in 1950.
Lookers is a British car dealership chain in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It represents multiple brands, and is based in Altrincham. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was bought by Global Auto Holdings, a sister company of Alpha Auto Group, for £465.4m in 2023.
The 2006 Paris Motor Show took place from 30 September to 15 October 2006, in Paris expo Porte de Versailles, Paris, France.
The 2007 Belgian Grand Prix was the fourteenth race of the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship, returning to the Formula One calendar after a year's absence. It was held on 16 September at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, near the village of Francorchamps, Wallonia, Belgium.
The 2007 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 9 September 2007 at Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Italy. It was the thirteenth race of the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship.
Lithia Motors, Inc. is an American nationwide automotive dealership group headquartered in Medford, Oregon. It is the third largest new vehicle automotive dealership group in the United States, below AutoNation and Penske Automotive Group. As of May, 2024, Lithia operates 298 stores in the United States, 14 stores in Canada and 170 in the United Kingdom. Lithia Motors employs approximately 21,150 people.
Auto Shanghai, officially known as the Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition, is a biennial international automobile show that alternates with the Beijing Auto Show as China's yearly international automotive exhibition. First held in 1985, Auto Shanghai is the nation's oldest auto exhibition, and is considered as an important major international auto show.
Perrys Motor Sales is a franchised automobile dealer in the United Kingdom, with its head office in Northampton, United Kingdom.
Stagecoach Highlands is a bus operator based in Inverness that runs services in the Scottish Highlands as well as on the Orkney Islands and Isle of Skye. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group formed in 2008 following the purchase of the independent Rapsons Group, and is today part of the Stagecoach North Scotland group of companies.
The European Motor Show Brussels is an auto show held biennial in the city of Brussels, Belgium. The number of visitors is around 600,000. The show is organized by FEBIAC and is scheduled by the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d'Automobiles.
Jardine Motors Group, is a multi-national operator of franchised motorcar dealerships in the United Kingdom with international outlets in Hong Kong, Macau and China. Jardine Motors Group market their vehicles under a series of brands worldwide including Zung Fu, Lancaster and Scotthall, and the worldwide group net profit, for the year ended 30 April 2012, was US$61 Million, based on revenue of US$5.128 billion.
Stoneacre Motor Group is a car dealership group based in the United Kingdom, having been established in December 1994. The company started trading by acquiring Stoneacre in 1994, a used car dealership based in Scunthorpe that had gone bankrupt. Stoneacre offers new and used car sales, as well as many aftersales services such as car servicing and MOTs. In the year to April 2019, Stoneacre had registered a turnover of £982m on its way to a targeted turnover of over £1 billion come 2020, while pre-tax profits rose to £17m.
Bruce's Coaches is a coach tour operator based in Salsburgh, Scotland.
Arnold Clark is a car dealer based in Glasgow, Scotland. As of 2022, the company has 193 dealerships across the United Kingdom.