{"id":53856,"date":"2021-04-05T11:46:05","date_gmt":"2021-04-05T10:46:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thenantwichnews.co.uk\/directory\/?p=53856"},"modified":"2021-04-05T11:46:05","modified_gmt":"2021-04-05T10:46:05","slug":"car-dealer-in-south-cheshire-retires-after-54-years-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thenantwichnews.co.uk\/directory\/car-dealer-in-south-cheshire-retires-after-54-years-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Car dealer in South Cheshire retires after 54 years service"},"content":{"rendered":"

A well-known motor dealer boss in South Cheshire is retiring after a mammoth 54 years on the road!<\/p>\n

Andy Barnes is head of business at Crewe SEAT, part of family owned Swansway Group, and is a popular member of the motor trade society.<\/p>\n

As a schoolboy, Andy earned extra money by washing cars at a local used car dealership, and learning valuable lessons about how the presentation of vehicles significantly adds to their appeal.<\/p>\n

He capitalised on his motor trade contacts and began making a living \u201cturning spanners\u201d.<\/p>\n

He watched the activities of a dapper sales executive, with his black velvet jacket and his impressive car.<\/p>\n

When the salesman went on holiday, Andy offered to fill his slot, telling his boss \u201cI can do that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Andy excelled as a used car salesperson in Chester, and he soon realised what a good living he could make selling cars.<\/p>\n

He remembers a day in 1974 when he received over \u00a3200 in his \u201clittle brown envelope\u201d as his weekly wage.<\/p>\n

\"Andy
Andy on his 60th birthday<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And he vividly recalls a gorgeous e-Type Jaguar and Daimler Dart he sold to achieve it.<\/p>\n

He joined a Ford franchise that specialised in fleet vehicles in the Ellesmere Port area.<\/p>\n

By 1977 Andy was in Clapham selling cars for Datsun (now Nissan).<\/p>\n

In addition to selling cars he oversaw the petrol station attached to the dealership.<\/p>\n

Promotions and advancements followed, including postings as Group Sales Manager in a family business representing Fiat, Mazda and Austin Rover and a General Manager position with Rover, before he returned to the North West in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

He met Michael Smyth, now Swansway Group Chairman, and Andy worked for him as a Sales Manager for RRG in Bury.<\/p>\n

This was also when he first met the now Swansway Group Directors, as John Smyth was a trainee Sales Executive, David Smyth managed all the petrol stations and Peter Smyth was at the helm at Toyota Bolton.<\/p>\n

Andy\u2019s path diverged from the Smyth family for a while, but by 2010 Swansway Group\u2019s Crewe SEAT dealership was recruiting for a Sales Manager.<\/p>\n

\"Andy
Andy winning an award<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Andy said: “I went to the interview in the boardroom, with all the Smyth brothers, and we had a lovely time reminiscing about the old days, and catching up together.<\/p>\n

“And I left that interview thinking I have no idea whether I have got that job or not.<\/p>\n

“But as I drove away, I got a phone call, and the answer was a yes! And so my fantastic time at Crewe SEAT began.”<\/p>\n

For the launch of the SEAT Ibiza, he imported 6 tonnes of sand into the dealership, to create Crewe SEAT\u2019s very own beach.<\/p>\n

He has undertaken everything from face painting events to golden ticket extravaganzas.<\/p>\n

Andy added: “SEAT make really impressive, accessible vehicles.<\/p>\n

“Over the 11 years I have been at Crewe SEAT<\/a> we have gone from selling 200 cars a year, to over 1,100 cars per year, without ever expanding our footprint.<\/p>\n

“The SEAT UK team are brilliant to work with too. I can pick up the phone to the Head of SEAT and have a real conversation. And this warm attitude ripples right down through all the senior team members.<\/p>\n

“I will miss the people tremendously. They are more than colleagues. When you work with people for such a long time, it has to be fun.<\/p>\n

“And I run a very open dealership, where you do get to know the teams and share a part of their lives.”<\/p>\n

John Smyth, Swansway Group Director, said: “We have very much enjoyed our long-standing working relationship with Andy that has brought such success for us all.<\/p>\n

“Andy\u2019s personal brand of ambition and dedication, combined with his warmth and enthusiasm will be very much missed by all those who had the pleasure of working with him.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A well-known motor dealer boss in South Cheshire is retiring after a mammoth 54 years on the road!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53861,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7089],"tags":[7916,7515,8005,8006,8004],"class_list":["post-53856","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-car","tag-motor","tag-retired","tag-swansway-group","tag-trade"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCar dealer in South Cheshire retires after 54 years service<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"well-known motor dealer boss Andy Barnes from South Cheshire is retiring after a mammoth 54 years on the road!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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