11:25 am, August 5, 2026
‘A career highlight – I could have swung from the chandeliers!’ That’s how Culloden Cars boss Craig Walker described the feeling of winning a Used Car Award, as nominations for this year’s ceremony continue to pour in.
Walker won the prestigious Dealers’ Dealer gong at last year’s event – the only award that is voted for by retailers themselves.
The 47-year-old is now encouraging other motor traders to put themselves forward for this year’s edition, telling dealers: ‘You’re better than you think you are’.
Reflecting on his own victory, Walker admitted he never expected to hear his name called.
‘Honestly, I didn’t see it coming,’ he said. ‘I’d gone down from Inverness not expecting anything, and when they read my name out I just sat there for a second thinking, “No way!”
‘Dealer’s Dealer is different from every other award in this industry in my opinion. It isn’t a judging panel, it’s your peers. It’s the people who know exactly what this job costs you, the ones who’ve had the same bad week you’ve had, so the award hits you right in the feels and makes it a little more special.’
Since collecting the trophy last November, Walker says Culloden Cars has continued to thrive despite a challenging market.
The dealership has expanded its sales team, grown its popular Dealership Diaries YouTube channel and is outperforming last year’s sales and profit figures.
Walker also says the business has embraced electric vehicles, despite concerns about the sector from some others within the industry.
‘There are millions of electric cars heading into the used market over the next few years and someone has to be ready to retail them and, just as importantly, service them properly,’ he said. ‘Our team are prepped and ready.
‘I’d be lying if I said it’s all been smooth but we’re in a stronger position than we were standing in that room last November, and a chunk of that business has come off the back of the award. It really does help move the needle within your business.’
Why do the Used Car Awards matter?
Dealers can be within with a chance of winning at the 2026 Used Car Awards by filling in our our nominations form.
All you need to do is select the category that you’d like to nominate yourself or someone else for on the form and supply the requested details.
From there, all entries will be judged by our Car Dealer experts, who will whittle them down to a shortlist of candidates.
But why should dealers take the time to enter? For Walker, it is all about giving independent dealers the recognition that is missing elsewhere.
‘These awards fix that,’ he said. ‘They have given a small team in the Highlands of Scotland the same shop window as an operation ten times the size, and they do it on merit.
‘That matters to customers, it matters to the staff, and it matters to the young lad or lass wondering whether this trade is worth building a career in.
‘They also raise the bar. When you read what other dealers are doing to win, you go back to work after the awards and you want to be better. I always come away from these awards a better man – albeit with a fuzzy head!’
Culloden Cars has already submitted its entries for this year’s awards, and Walker is now encouraging other dealers to do that same.
‘Enter!’ he said. ‘You are almost certainly doing something brilliant that you’ve stopped noticing because it’s just another Tuesday to you. Write it down and put it in.
‘The worst that happens is you spend an hour reflecting on how far you’ve come, which none of us do often enough.
‘I never thought a dealer from Inverness would win a national award. Then I did. Give yourself the chance. You’re better than you think you are.’
Enter now
With voting now underway, here are the other key dates for your diary:
- Nominations close: Monday, September 28
- Nominations (long list) revealed: Monday, October 5
- Shortlist revealed: Monday, October 19
- Awards night: Monday, November 30
To be in with a chance of a trophy, our nominations form needs to be completed and the process couldn’t be any more straightforward!
The judging process includes our rigorous mystery shopping, which secretly checks how dealers handle inquiries – meaning that anyone hoping to make the shortlist will have to stay on the ball all the time.
A full list of the categories in which dealers can vote can be found below. For suppliers and companies wishing to sponsor categories there are still a handful of opportunities available – but don’t hang around. Contact us now to discuss.
- Dealers’ Dealer — Dealerkit
- Service & Repair Outlet – Sponsorship available
- Used EV Dealer of the Year — Warrantywise
- Social Media User – Sponsorship available
- Use of Video — Carwow
- Used Car Website — Visitor Chat
- Used Car Online Sales Experience — Central Car Auctions
- Specialist Used Car Dealership — Warranty First
- Used Car Sales Team — Diamondbrite
- Used Car Dealer Principal — Warranty First
- Future Star — Northridge Finance
- Used Car Customer Care (and sub-categories) — RAC Dealer Network
- Used Car Supermarket — Cazoo
- Newcomer Dealership — Jigsaw Finance (T2T)
- Used Commercial Vehicle Dealer — Close Brothers Motor Finance
- Days To Turn Award — Autotrader
- Diversity and Inclusion – Sponsorship available
- Headline Sponsorship — Black Horse
- Used Car Dealership: Up To 50 Cars — Black Horse
- Used Car Dealership: 51–100 Cars — Black Horse
- Used Car Dealership: Over 100 Cars — Black Horse
- Used Car Dealership Group — Black Horse
- Outstanding Achievement – Sponsorship available
- Lifetime Achievement — GardX
We’ll also be naming the best used cars in six categories, plus the overall Used Car of the Year from those six, along with Manufacturer Used Car Scheme:
- Small Car – Autoglym
- Mid-Sized Car – Autoglym
- Executive Car – Autoglym
- SUV – Autoglym
- AFV (Alternatively Fuelled Vehicle) – Autoglym
- Manufacturer Used Car Scheme of the Year – Autoglym
The prizes will be dished out in a glitzy ceremony at The Brewery, London on November 30.