New branch locations
We opened nine new locations across the business in FY 2024, from Inverness to Cadiz and added over 230,000 sq ft of branch-based capacity including service locations, bodyshops and new rental branch operations.
The strategic aim is to create a mix of larger sites that can generate more capacity for our growing services, combined with a work environment that is appealing and provides the right experience for our customers. Our expanding property network and investment in modern equipment including taking a growing number of EV repairs, also delivers workflow efficiencies, enabling us to be more productive.
Since the start of the new financial year, on top of the nine locations in FY 2024, we’ve opened three more branches: two in Spain and one in the UK. All of these have substantial footprints as we look to enhance productivity and capacity in each location.
We have three drivers to our property strategy:
- Improving the workplace environment. Taking on new modern purpose-built premises, particularly around the body shop and rental facilities or two, refurbishing our existing sites to make sure that that working environment is good.
- Increasing future capacity. Larger premises that can take that additional capacity that we know we’re growing into and leveraging that workflow efficiency, which increases productivity.
- Introducing new technology. This enables our site to conduct best-in class techniques for repair and maintenance, a digital environment in a body shop and a workshop.
At our branches and our premises, we’ve rolled out more EV charging, so it’s rolled out to most of our UK branches now where we think they are viable, as they are places where we would renew the leases. In Spain, the infrastructure, charging infrastructure is now in the vast majority of all our urban branches and green parts, we look at recycling.
