Thames Valley car dealership goes into administration

City Motor Holdings, a multi-franchise car dealership based in the Thames Valley, has gone into administration.

The company operated a total of 13 new and approved car dealerships across Reading and Newbury and was headquartered in Basingstoke. The administration has resulted in the loss of 267 jobs.

After a difficult trading period, the company was attempting to sell off its Gowrings Ford and City Peugeot operations in Reading as well as City Kia in Newbury, before it called in administrators from KPMG Restructuring.

City SEAT and City Skoda, both in Basingstoke, have ceased trading since Tuesday 13 September and a spokesperson for City Motor Holdings said they were working with manufacturers to minimise the disruption to customers.

The spokesperson also stated that they were in negotiations with a number of parties but could not say anything while discussions were ongoing. He said: “We are in talks with third parties that may lead to the sale of the remaining dealerships as a going concern, and if a buyer can be found it will give us the best chance of preserving as many jobs as possible.”

Appointed administrators Steve Absolom and Will Wright have retained 19 staff members to assist them with winding down the company operation.

Mr Absolom attributed the company going into administration to the high number of nearly-new and used cars on the market. “While industry figures indicate that the number of new car registrations in the UK has remained consistently high over the last two years, the number of nearly-new and used cars also coming to market has put pressure on motor dealerships around the country.

"Against this backdrop and after a sustained period of poor trading, the directors of City Motors Holdings took the difficult decision to close its operations and call for the appointment of administrators.”

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