Chris Wiseman steps down as Wessex Garages MD after 25 years

Chris Wiseman has announced his departure from Bristol-based AM100 car retail group Wessex Garages, stepping down after 25 years with the business, including nearly six as managing director.

In a June 6 LinkedIn message, Wiseman reflected on a career spanning more than four decades in the motor trade, calling time on a role that has seen him help steer Wessex through significant growth and transformation.

“Today is my last day at Wessex Garages,” he wrote. “I can look back proudly on how far we have come and what we have achieved; but the time has come to say goodbye.”

Wiseman - pictured above receiving the 2023 NFDA Green Dealer of the Year Award - joined the business in the late 1990s, working alongside former MD Keith Brock for over two decades. He stepped into the top role in 2019, following Brock’s departure, at a time when the company was adjusting to new ownership under Japanese group VT Holdings.

During his tenure, Wessex Garages continued to thrive across its network, known for its strong franchise relationships and emphasis on quality, standards and strategic representation.

Paying tribute to colleagues past and present, Wiseman said: “It’s only at times like these you realise the strength and talent of people around you, many of whom have been with me from the start.”

His departure does not mark retirement, however. “For me, it’s a new chapter - one where I will find a way to make a difference, improve and give a little back to an industry I have been privileged to work in and that has afforded me so much,” he said. “In the meantime, it’s a lot of golf!”

Quoting his first boss from nearly 45 years ago - who used to say “the game’s finished” - Wiseman added: “With every challenge or piece of legislation that’s thrown at us, automotive has always been agile enough to react, change course and adapt to new ideas… the game’s not finished. With today’s technology and speed of change, it’s just getting started.”

No announcement has yet been made regarding Wiseman’s successor