10:48 am, March 18, 2019
HARWOODS’ latest Aston Martin dealership will move into the site that formerly served as Ford’s Transit factory in Southampton.
The 1.33-acre area of the former production facility was bought by the dealer group for £1.7 million.
Harwoods already has several dealerships and workshops in the south of England and says the latest addition should be fully operational in 2020.
The new location is well connected, as it’s close to the M27 and connecting M3, Southampton Airport and, via Southampton Parkway railway station, the main rail link to London Waterloo.
The site is already home to other dealerships, including Jaguar and Land Rover dealerships owned by Inchcape. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the M27, the well-established Southampton Mercedes-Benz is operated by Marshall Motor Group.
Archie Harwood, chief executive of Harwoods Group, said: ‘We’re grateful to Vail Williams for securing us an ideal site for our state-of-the-art Aston Martin showroom for discerning motorists looking to own the iconic, luxury British sports car.
‘We anticipate the new showroom opening in spring 2020 and are planning to recruit a number of skilled roles to be based there, which is good news for the local and wider community.’
Before being sold, the original assembly operations at Swaythling stretched over 44 acres and produced Transit vans until July 2013.
The redevelopment of the entire site is expected to bring in 1,200 jobs to the area.
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