Mazda has returned to Brighton for the first time in three years with the opening of a new showroom by Rivervale Cars.

The £1.8m dealership is situated in Victoria Road, Portslade, and includes a seven-car showroom with space for 20 cars outside. The service facilities include £70,000 of the latest diagnostic and workshop equipment, and a parts centre. Riverdale expects to sell 250 new cars a year.

Previously, local Mazda buyers had to travel to Horsham or Bognor Regis.

Riverdale will open a second business on the site later this month. The £1m-plus Rivervale Cars Prestige will specialise in used Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, with room to display 30 cars.

Directors Malcolm Hance and Jeffrey Nailard, are confident they have an excellent market opportunity in the Brighton area. “I imagine we have one of the best Mazda showrooms in the UK with our new building,” says Hance.

The total workforce at Rivervale Mazda will number 20.