Lookers called on its workforce to “focus on the details” and strive to be “best in brand” in 2018 as the car retail group hosted 600 staff at its annual General Managers’ Conference.

The AM100 retailer, which is set to announce its Annual Results on March 7, gathered its staff at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre for the event which aimed to inspire its people to “continue achieving operational excellence” and outline its recipe for success amid “uncertain market conditions”.

Chief executive Andy Bruce highlighted its formula of having ‘The Right Brands in the Right Locations’ as a key reason for its year-on-year growth at the 153-site business over the last five years.

And chief operating officer, Nigel McMinn, asked the assembled workforce to “focus on the details” and strive to be “best in brand”, adding: “It is vital that we maintain consistency right across our retail network by firstly getting the basics right every time.

“This will allow us to achieve operational excellence and consistently achieve top quartile status at both a national and regional level.

“This was very much the message at the 2018 Lookers General Managers’ Conference, which I’m happy to say was a resounding success.”

Guests at the conference were treated to a cookery masterclass by British-Jamaican celebrity chef, musician and BBC Dragons Den star Levi Roots in a bid to emphasise the positive effects of using the right ingredients for success.

Following the conference, guests were treated to a gala dinner, which included entertainment from comic and impersonator Rory Bremner.

During the dinner Nigel McMinn also announced the 2018 finalists of the Lookers Excellence Awards, which will see 100 Lookers colleagues and their guests treated to a trip to Monaco in May, where the winners will be announced.

Andy Bruce said: “The Lookers Annual Conference is one of my favourite days of the year as it brings together the wealth of talent we have here in the group, while giving us a chance to discuss ways in which we can all improve our respective businesses.

“Having the right brands in the right locations is still paramount to everything we do, but this has to be complimented by having the right ingredients within the dealerships themselves, whether that’s having the right levels of stock, being smarter about the way we work, or the experience our customers have when they walk through our doors.

“This is what this year’s conference was all about.”