The company began trading in 2007 after acquiring Bristol Street Motors, a Birmingham-based car dealership that was originally founded in the city back in 1924, and which had expanded to include sites across the country.[2]
The company represents a wide range of manufacturers and currently operates dealerships under the names Vertu and Bristol Street Motors.
Vertu also operated in Scotland under the Macklin Motors brand, which was launched in 2010.[3] The Macklin Motors dealerships, which stretch from Ayr in the West across to Edinburgh in the East, were rebranded as Vertu in February 2025. [4]
The growth of the company moved up a gear with the purchase of the Yorkshire-based dealership Farnell Land Rover in 2013.[5] They were rebranded as Vertu Land Rover in 2021.[6]
In 2018, Vertu acquired Hughes Group Holdings and its subsidiary Hughes of Beaconsfield[7] and the company has continued to grow since then with a number of acquisitions both small and large, including major expansion in the South West with the purchase of Helston Garages in 2022[8] and Rowes Garage Ltd in 2023.[9]
The addition of Burrows Motors Company in Yorkshire[10] saw the Vertu portfolio increase to more than 200 individual sites across England and Scotland.
Alongside the retail side of the business, Vertu provides vehicle leasing for personal and business use under the brand Vertu Lease Cars and also operates a range ancillary businesses that include Vansdirect[11] and Wiperblades.co.uk.[12]
Partnerships
Previous logo
Vertu has a range of different partnerships across the worlds of sport and entertainment, both at a brand and a local level.
One of Vertu's main partnerships revolves around the BTCC, where the company has backed the EXCELR8 team since 2021.
It took up the role of title sponsor for the 2022 campaign,[13] where it secured the title with Tom Ingram. Having previously competed under the Bristol Street Motors name, the team reverts to running as Team VERTU from the 2025 season.[14]
The company is also the title sponsor of the MINI CHALLENGE, a role it adopted from the start of 2023.[15]
Other motorsport-related partnerships saw Vertu sponsor Channel 4 F1 from 2020-2022 through the Bristol Street Motors and Macklin Motors brands, whilst the Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing team competed in the 2022 W Series season with drivers Alice Powell and Jessica Hawkins.[16]
Vertu also operates a number of partnerships in football, the biggest of which saw it named as the Official Car Dealer of the English Football League in November 2023,[17] with the EFL Trophy being referred to as the Bristol Street Motors Trophy for the 2023/24 season.
As part of Vertu's brand consolidation, the competition was then renamed as the Vertu Trophy in November 2024.[18]
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