9:14 am, January 23, 2014
DEALER group Vertu Motors created more than 100 new jobs last year.
The retailer, based in the North East, is the sixth largest motor retailer in the country, employing approximately 753 people in seven years.
Based in Gateshead, Vertu Motors acquired 32 dealerships and opened a further two outlets last year alone. This saw the company grow from 70 outlets to 104, helping it to become the largest Honda and Hyundai retailer in the UK and third largest Ford dealer.
These acquisitions saw Vertu create 103 new job positions across the region and the firm’s recruitment drive has helped many people like James Collingwood get back into work.
Collingwood was a bricklayer from Wheatley Hill in County Durham. He was unemployed for three years before he appeared alongside Robert Forrester, chief executive of Vertu, on a television debate to discuss unemployment in the North East in 2012.
Forrester offered Collingwood an interview and he was able to secure a position as a trainee sales executive at Bristol Street Motors Sunderland Vauxhall.
Forrester told The Northern Echo: ‘It is very rewarding and pleasing to create jobs and growth and see the direct affect this has on people’s lives and on the wider economy.
‘James is going from strength to strength. He has completed his training and is a very valued member of the team. His clear determination in finding a job and the way he made his own luck by pursuing every available opportunity to find work were what initially made me want to employ him, and I believe these traits will serve James well throughout his career.’
Collingwood added: ‘My life has completely transformed. I’ve trained as a sales executive, a role which I really enjoy, and am now progressing with my career at Vertu. They’re a fantastic and supportive company to work for, with lots of opportunities for professional development.’
