Car dealership motoring ahead with opening of £2m showroom

A PERTH motor group has hailed the opening of its new £2 million showroom.

Strathmore Volvo’s new site on Dunkeld Road was completed last month – but has closed due to the new Covid-19 restrictions.

It is the latest major investment by Cameron Motor Group in Perth.

Six years ago the firm knocked down and rebuilt Volkswagen at a cost of £2m. In 2018 it spent £1.75m to overhaul Perth Audi.

Construction was delayed for almost a year after Dundee building services firm McGill went into administration in 2019.

Norman Leishman, retailer principal at Strathmore, said: “We are thrilled to have unveiled our new showroom.

“It’s designed to make our customers feel relaxed in an environment that provides flexible waiting, working and assessment areas.”

The showroom features a lounge area with Swedish cakes and coffee.

The site is still operational for services, repairs, MOTs and parts, while the sales department is operating digitally or by phone.

Cameron Motor Group was established in 1930 by Ian Cameron at Bridgend, Perth, in what used to be the Perth Hunt stables.

Current chairman Douglas Cameron, took over the running of the business in 1970 and in 1973 signed the Audi contract.

Meanwhile, the latest figures show new cars sold in the UK last year fell by almost a third last year.

New car registrations dropped to just over 1.6 million, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), which warned of a “rocky” few months ahead.

The trade body said a 10.9% decline in December wrapped up a “turbulent” 12 months.

Demand fell by 680,076 units to the lowest level of registrations since 1992.

New car sales fell by around 29% on 2019, the biggest year-on-year decline since 1943.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said 2020 “will be seen as a ‘lost year’ for automotive, with the sector under pandemic-enforced shutdown for much of the year and uncertainty over future trading conditions taking their toll.

“However, with the rollout of vaccines and clarity over our new relationship with the EU, we must make 2021 a year of recovery,” he added.

He said the last-minute Brexit trade deal was a “massive relief” to the automotive industry, avoiding a no-deal “disaster”. But he added that companies will still face more administration and red tape.