Renault dealer Wests Motor Group in East Anglia has added another French franchise.

It has taken on its first Citroen franchise and will retail the brand in Bedford alongside its existing Renault and Dacia dealership, closing a 10 year open point.

The move comes six years after the long-serving Renault dealer last branched out by acquiring its only Nissan franchise and another Renault business in King's Lynn, Norfolk, from collapsed retailer Swan Street Motors. It also added a Fiat franchise in the town in 2012.

Wests, whose Companies House records show turnover shrinking from £31m to £25.5m in 2011 as Renault's UK business came under pressure, has represented Renault in Cambridge for decades, now also home to Dacia, and also has a Renault service centre near Newmarket as well as the King's Lynn businesses.

Sam Horncastle, Wests Motor Group director, said: "I was initially attracted to the Citroën brand by the DS range, in particular DS3. We can see the positive effect this is having on the financial performance of the Citroën network.

"We love the fresh look the new Citroën corporate identity will give to the site and we hope our customers will enjoy the new experience.”

Citroën’s head of network development Jonathan Sloan, added: "We have had an exciting and busy 2012, opening no fewer than nine new sites and managing a number of takeovers by acquisitive partners currently within the network.

"Wests are a great addition to our brand and are able to demonstrate excellent customer satisfaction. We look forward to building our relationship with them in the future.”

Citroën’s remaining open points include locations in Scotland, the North West and London.