Durham car dealership bucks national trend.
Croxdale Group Durham celebrates record sales on the back of investment and growth
A Durham car dealership is bucking the national trend after seeing sales of the new 74 plate vehicle soar in September.
Croxdale Group Durham had a record month for car sales in September – and its strong sales performance continued throughout October.
The large, multi-franchised car dealer group recently invested half a million pounds in its servicing and repair centre – which also created 20 jobs – and the operation is also undergoing huge investment into modernising and renovating all buildings inside and out.
The group has also grown to offer more than 200 approved used vehicles on site at any one time, plus an extensive new vehicle inventory.
Graham Elliott, general sales manager at Croxdale, who has been with the firm almost seven years, said: “In September, we had the best result the garage has ever had in its existence in terms of sales, selling at least 300 cars.”
This positive result for Croxdale Group came despite a national picture of private car sales in the new registration in September being down 4% compared with September 2023.
Nationally, this meant September 2024 was “the worst September for new car sales this century” according to The Car Expert’s interpretation of Society of Manufacturer and Motor Trader (SMMT) figures – with the exception of 2022, when the pandemic led to parts shortages and poor supply.
The SMTT reported the overall market improved by 1% year on year in September – but this was skewed by fleet registrations, which were up 4%.
In October, the new car market fell even more sharply, with sales down 6% according to the SMMT, who said declines were recorded across all types of vehicle except battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
During the Labour Government’s first Budget in October, finance minister Rachel Reeves increased incentives towards new zero-emission cars and supported the take-up of new EVs.
Graham believes the group’s exceptional team ethos, its supreme high standards and proper execution of carefully thought-out plans help it achieve its strong results, which have enabled Croxdale Group to buck the national trend on private car sales.
“The senior leadership team regularly meet to discuss and implement plans with a forward-thinking approach based on current market trends and offers, led by our managing director Anthony Rockingham,” Graham said.
“We are a strong team, whose standards are high and we never let them slip – especially in terms of our excellent customer service.”
Anthony believes the success of Croxdale Group is down to the holistic service it provides to customers, from purchasing a new or used vehicle from a wide range of models, through supporting customers with servicing and repairs.
While the group recognises the increasing demand for and market dominance of electric vehicles, (EVs) it also offers a wide range of diesel, petrol, hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars, and has seen continued high demand for these.
However, Anthony does caution that, while the operation is prepared with a wide range of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, those who are not yet ready to make the switch to an EV will soon start to see their options becoming more limited in terms of supply and choice.
“There has never been a better time to go electric due to the deals on offer, but we attract a wide range of customers who can be assured of a great deal on any new or used vehicle, whether an EV or ICE model,” he says.
“We ensure we have got the cars pre-ordered in anticipation of demand, so customers never have to wait for their vehicle to come into stock.
“We have a good idea of what’s going to be popular based on the offers that are coming through and, rather than waiting for the demand, we pre-order so we have the stock ready to go.
“It’s more of a risk on our part, but we have formed a formidable, proactive team who are getting it right and ensuring there’s no need for customers to go anywhere else.”
Praising the team, Anthony said the key to its success has been the key people within the business across sales, servicing, parts and finance and accounting.
“Key people all being invested in the business and handling their own area within the business is the true driving force and key to our success,” he said.
Croxdale Group Durham’s operation of the Stellantis Spoticar programme, providing 12 months warranty and roadside assistance on every Stellantis pre-owned vehicle, also increases the group’s popularity with customers.
Stellantis brands include Citroen, DS, Peugeot, Vauxhall, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Abarth.
At Croxdale Group, any other marques of pre-owned vehicle also always come with a minimum 12-month warranty and roadside assistance.
“We believe this is another key to our success as virtually all of our competitors only provide three to six months’ warranty,” says Anthony.
Vicki Halse, group chief financial officer at Croxdale, described the team’s performance in September and October, as “phenomenal”.
“It has been extremely hard, but the results proved worth it for everyone involved,” she said.
“We have demonstrated that the team are very motivated when it comes to reaching the goals that have been set – everyone’s pulled together and it’s paid off.”