11:00 am, May 20, 2022
Swindon-based dealership group Fish Brothers saw its pre-tax profit rise by almost 50 per cent last year to nearly £3.8m.
Its accounts for the year ended December 31, 2021, just published on Companies House, show it made £3.759m versus £2.522m the year before.
Turnover went up from £143.5m to £162.2m – an increase of 13 per cent.
The number of new vehicles that it sold fell from 5,344 in 2020 to 4,978 in 2021, but used car sales were up by 204 units at 3,119, meaning an overall drop in sales of 162 vehicles.
Meanwhile, the number of staff rose by eight to 293, with four more employees each being gained by the service and parts departments.
Fish Brothers claimed £327,000 under the furlough scheme last year, versus £1.017m in 2020.
In the board report, signed on its behalf by company secretary Gregory Hughes, the directors said the pandemic had augmented risks and uncertainties faced by the group, such as a drop in consumer confidence because of pressure on family budgets as well as a weaker global economy.
A lack of demand could in turn mean lower used car values, they warned.
However, despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, the directors said they believed that Fish Brothers had enough money, liquidity and bank facilities to keep it going through a downturn in the economy.
The family-owned dealer group, which was started in 1948 with just the one dealership, now has more than a dozen showrooms, with franchises for Skoda, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota, Lexus, Dacia, Honda, Cupra, Seat, Kia, Nissan and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.
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