After another exceptionally tough competition, the winners of the annual Isuzu Truck UK Dealership Challenge 2015 have been announced following the finals of the challenge at the ITUK headquarters in Hatfield, Hertfordshire.
The nationwide challenge attracts entries from ITUK dealers throughout England, Scotland and Wales. This year the six finalists were HRVS Sheffield, AK Commercials Bristol, Harry Moore Commercials Exeter, Ferndown Commercials Wimborne, MC Truck & Bus Maidstone and MC Truck & Bus Southampton. There are two award categories: 1) Full Sales, Parts and Service Dealers and 2) Parts and Service Dealers only. The preliminary rounds are on-line, and the individual dealer teams have to work together to answer lots of detailed questions. Once all of the answers have been submitted, ITUK establishes which dealers are the top three teams in each category and then invites them to Hatfield for the day of the finals.
Peter Murphy, MD of Isuzu Truck (UK) says; “Every year I am overwhelmed by the level of expertise and knowledge that our dealers display during the finals of our annual Dealership Challenge. We can all see at first-hand how our dealers continue to operate at the very highest standards and this gives us the assurance that all of our customers are getting the very best service that they deserve.”
Peter Murphy continues; “In addition, every year the two top technicians from the Dealership Challenge are invited to go to Japan to compete in Isuzu Motors’ global I:1 Grand Prix competition. Last year our three-man team, comprising of ITUK head coach Tony Hicks, technician Brian George from Imperial Commercials in Glasgow and technician Chris Richmond from Ferndown Commercials Wimborne became the world champions. It was a thrilling achievement and we are so proud of the quality of people we have in our dealerships throughout the country.”
For the full sales, parts and service dealer category the winner of the 2015 Isuzu Truck UK Dealership Challenge was MC Truck & Bus Maidstone. Last year this team finished in second place, so this is a really special triumph for the team. Their sister company MC Truck and Bus in Southampton, a first-time entrant, was one of the finalists in the Parts and Service Dealer category.
The two other finalists in the full sales, parts and service category were Ferndown Commercials Wimborne, this team came third in this category in 2014 and HVRS Sheffield, which were finalists in 2013.
Peter Booth, MC Group’s Dealer Principal, said; “We are absolutely thrilled by our teams’ performances, it shows clear dedication from all our departments to provide an outstanding service to our customers. Not only does this demonstrate the wealth of knowledge that our employees have but it also shows how committed they are to ensuring every customer receives the best possible treatment across the board. We have the skills and knowledge to do this and I am extremely proud of both teams. And, to cap it all, our technician Simon Abnett from Maidstone, was one of two technicians that were judged to be outstanding during the technical skills elements of the competition. This means he will now be representing the UK at Isuzu’s annual worldwide showcase technical event, the I-1 Grand Prix, that’s being held in November later this year.
Peter Booth continues; “Simon represented our technicians brilliantly, and to have one of our own employees represent us and ITUK on an international level is just the icing on the cake. Isuzu is such an integral part of our business and to know we are working to such high standards and delivering the brands’ core values really is a great achievement. To have not one, but two teams make it to the finals was a fantastic result and just proves our commitment to consistently provide the highest levels of service across the company.”
In the Parts and Service Dealers category, Harry Moore Commercials from Exeter triumphed for the second year running – they were the winners of the same category in 2014. George Moore, the CARE Champion from Harry Moore Commercials says;“We are absolutely thrilled to be the winners of this category two years in a row, it’s a great achievement for our team. The Isuzu Truck Dealership Challenge is always a fantastic event and our team members really put their hearts and souls into it. We can’t believe we’ve won again and even better this year, our top technician Steve Tancock will be joining Simon Abnett from MC Truck & Bus at the I:1 Grand Prix in Japan in November. It’s very exciting and a great honour to have won.”
The other two finalists in this category were AK Commercials Bristol who were also finalists in 2014 and new entrant MC Truck & Bus Southampton.
