Same faces, different location, name
Windsor’s Wholesale Depot relocating to Kentville, rebranding
Hants County Wholesale Depot customers may have to travel a little further for service now that the business has relocated to the Annapolis Valley.
However, they’ll still have the same faces greeting them under the newly rebranded entity.
Peter Simmons, the president of Valley Ford in Kentville, said Wholesale Depot, which operated in Windsor for almost seven years, closed in late August. There were a couple of factors that led to the decision to leave the industrial park site behind.
“We did have a full-service operation going down here
servicing with both sales and but the last going off, we were
having trouble getting technicians in the area to fully operate our service bays at a
Simmons. proper capacity,” said
This summer, they were down to one technician, so the company planned to
servicing move the automotive section to Valley Ford while keeping the sales component, of new and used vehicles, in Windsor.
Then, they were approached by people interested in buying the building.
“With the large renovation that we have happening at Valley Ford, we thought it was a good time to bring everything we do under one roof,” Simmons said, noting the year-long renovation is just wrapping up.
Wholesale Depot has been rebranded as Rebuild Auto Financing and will be located at Valley Ford’s flagship store.
“So same faces, different location, different name,” said Simmons.
“We think it will be a lot more efficient and we will be able to be more aggressive on our buying inventory and whatnot all at one location. We’re excited about it.”
MOVING FORWARD
Ken Eastman will now be stationed in Kentville and Bob Morton, who has been a sales rep with Wholesale Depot for about four years, will be
providing a mobile service for customers.
“Bob’s going to spend a lot of his time on the road, dealing with clients,” said Simmons, noting he’ll be travelling back and forth between West Hants and Kings County as required.
It’s a role that Morton said he’s looking forward to taking on.
“I’ll be the face of West Hants. My office is out of my home or in your home, wherever you need me to be,” said Morton of the changes.
Both Simmons and Morton said he won’t be limited to showing vehicles in Kentville.
“In terms of showing inventory around the county, he’ll be able to have inventory brought to people’s doorsteps whenever he requires that for showings, deliveries, et cetera,” said Simmons.
Morton said it’s all about accommodating existing and future customers.
“I’ll try to accommodate the residents down here as much as I can,” Morton said.
Valley Ford offers a shuttle service for clients waiting to get mechanical work on their vehicles done, and they have a number of loaner vehicles available.
Despite the Windsor site closure, Simmons said they “did really good business” selling pre-owned vehicles in the community and helping individuals overcome credit challenges.
Both Morton and Simmons say residents will still be taken care of via Kentville.
“We want to make sure
that the good folks of Hants County and beyond that we’ve serviced for a number of years (know) we’re still going to continue to give them the same great service,”
said Simmons.
Morton said he’s received a lot of feedback since the announcement on social media.
“It’s actually been quite positive. People understand that things are changing; (they’re) certainly happy that I’m going to be in the area and still servicing them and helping them with their vehicle needs,” said Morton.