Patterson Motor Group turns over an incredible £62m per site – more than any other retailer in the UK. Its four dealerships each average 3,680 new car and LCV sales, another record.

But this is more than simply a story of a group obsessed with colossal sales volumes. It’s also about generating good profits.

Patterson operates from three Ford showrooms in Newcastle-upon-Tyne at Scotswood Road, Shiremoor and Hexham, and a Seat dealership also located at Scotswood Road.

The Scotswood Road and Shirewood sites also house bodyshops, while prep work is carried out at the 2,500-vehicle PDI centre in Wallsend, which the group claims is the largest in the country.

According to managing director Ashley Winter, the large volume of sales generated by Pattersons is due to fleet contracts with national rental and plant hire companies. In the LCV sector it also supplies fleets nationwide, as well as to local retail and business users.

In 2006 Patterson sold 5,350 new cars and 9,396 new commercial vehicles, making it the second largest seller of Ford LCVs after Ford Retail, according to AM100 figures.

David White, sales director, says the business model is a success because Patterson Motor Group is financially strong enough to deal with these large fleet volumes.

“A lot of dealers shy away from working with fleets because you have to work with them on their terms,” he says. “You have to buy the vehicles before you deliver them, then you have to have the right quantity in the right place with the right specifications at the right time.

“A lot of preparation goes into making that happen. You pay upfront and then wait for the money to come in.”

Though the majority of its sales come from fleet, Pattersons also works hard to ensure its retail facilities are a desirable destination for customers.

This is part of a double page spread on Patterson Motor Group appearing in the latest issue of AM. To subscribe click here.