Pearsons Mitsubishi of Longbenton, Newcastle, has added a further site at East Boldon, Sunderland.

The firm is part of Mercedes van and truck specialist Bell Truck Sales, which is to open the Tees Valley’s largest used commercial vehicle sales site in Stockton this month.

Managing director of Pearsons Mitsubishi, Gary Graham, says: “Pearsons is a recognized and trusted name, and using it for our car side keeps it separate from the commercial side. That said, in time we plan to have some shared sites with the van business.”

Pearsons is also in discussion with a couple of other car manufacturers with a view to adding one of them as a franchise.

Bell Truck Sales is a family run business owned by two sisters, Yvonne Bell and Carolyn Bayne. Graham says that the Mitsubishi brand sits well with this type of business. “We like Mitsubishi because it has a very flat management structure, which makes it possible to easily contact people, even at the highest level.

“The brand sits well with the van side as there is a lot of cross fertilization. The Mitsubishi L200 is a good example of this,” he says.

Bell Truck Sales acquired Pearsons Mitsubishi, Longbenton, only last August. This year Graham predicts that Pearsons will sell 350 new and 250 used vehicles at Longbenton and 300 new cars including fleet sales and 200 used at East Boldon.