Waylands has continued its best-in-class performance to secure the Dealer Group of the Year (up to 10 sites) award for the fifth year in a row at the 2023 AM Awards.

With Waylands’ continued focus on steadily growing the business, this might be the final year the company will be competing in the up to 10 sites category. The group expanded once again in 2022 with the addition of premium electric brand Polestar, with Waylands chosen as one of the few partners to operate a new retail space at Cribbs Causeway, Bristol.

This is in addition to Kia and MG joining as franchises in 2021, alongside Waylands’ established Volvo sites that sit at the heart of the business.

Waylands continued to grow in 2022, with group turnover up 35.1%, profit before tax up by 15%, new retail volume growth up 33%, used retail volumes up 22.5% and service hours up 31.6% yearon-year in 2022.

Waylands sums up its approach to business as “large enough to invest, small enough to care”. Led by John O’Hanlon, former Ridgeway chief executive, Waylands is backed by large dealer group expertise in terms of controls and processes, but there is a genuine focus on family, respect and values of the kind expected from a smaller business.

Increasing the number of women in leadership roles has been a key focus, with 36% women managers across the company. Waylands continues to sponsor and champion local events for drawing in more diverse talent to the sector and works with local colleges for apprentice attraction.

This has been particularly successful in establishing Waylands’ new Digital Experience Team (DET), another key objective for 2022. The DET has been tasked with delivering a true omnichannel approach and showroom level of service for digital customers.

This new team has led to a 120% improvement to sales lead capture compared with the previous external chat provider.

Waylands grows its own and there were 12 internal promotions last year, with 90% of management positions filled via promotion.

Waylands has also launched its academy with new induction and training programmes, as well as establishing apprenticeship schemes for digital and sales positions, on top of traditional courses.

These initiatives have contributed to Waylands’ position as one of the best dealer groups to work at in the UK with a 98% staff satisfaction rating from its internal bi-annual survey.

Sponsor's comment

Paul Bromage, client support director at Warranty Administration Services, said: “We’d like to say congratulations to all the winners of the night, with a special recognition to Waylands for winning the Dealer Group of the Year (up to 10 sites) at the AM Awards!

"Attending the AM Awards is a fantastic opportunity to meet with our existing clients, the leading motor dealers in the industry, and celebrate their recent successes and achievements. As a partner to our dealers, it’s a privilege to celebrate their wins with them.

"Thank you to AM Online for hosting an amazing event – see you next year!”

 

Our AM Awards 2023 sponsors