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Toyota has recognised retailers hitting the right note within its dealer network with the presentation accolades at its annual BRIT awards.

The top honour at this year’s Best Retailer in Town awards reflect Toyota President Akio Toyoda’s aspiration for retailers to focus on excellent service at a local level and were hosted by comedian Hugh Dennis last week.

Claiming the Retailer of the Year award was Hodgson Toyota of Gateshead, which is part of the north east-based Hodgson group.

Paul Van der Burgh, Toyota GB President and Managing Director, visited the centre to congratulate management and staff and hear more about their winning approach to business.

He said: “The team here have captured the essence of what the Best Retailer in Town means, building excellent customer relationships, delivering first class service and maximising opportunities in all areas of their business.”

Hodgson Toyota will mark 13 years at its Swalwell site near the famous Metro Centre this year and it currently has a team of 48 people.

David Lowes, centre principal, said: “As a company, we’re hugely focused on the customer experience and we’re always aiming to make that as special as possible for those that come in to our dealership, and this is best achieved when everyone’s working in tandem.

“We also make sure we’re constantly developing people, feeding their hunger – a slightly new twist on the adage that happy staff equals happy customers.

“But above all, the crux of our business is that we’re people dealing with people and that, I believe, is what makes us successful and has led to this brilliant award.”

The BRIT award for best group went to Jemca, meanwhile, which achieved the highest average score across its eight retail sites in Greater London and the Thames Valley.

All 180 Toyota retailers in the UK were eligible for the awards, with the results calculated from cumulative monthly report scores on their performance in a number of key areas.

The award winners were:

Toyota Retailer of the Year, Hodgson Toyota, Gateshead

Best Toyota Group, Jemca

Customer, Charles Hurst Toyota, Newtownabbey

People, RRG Macclesfield

New Vehicle Sales, FRF Motors, Swansea

New Vehicle Sales (rural and small retailers), Jim’s Garage, Shetland

Used Vehicle Sales, Arnold Clark, Glasgow

After Sales, Steven Eagell, Milton Keynes

Reputation and Reach, Pinkstones Group

Business, Snows Toyota, Southampton

Toyota Financial Services, Yeomans, Brighton