Business First December 2017 December BF Digital | Page 14

COVER STORY - DONNELLY GROUP CELEBRATES 70 YEARS SERVING NORTHERN IRELAND
DONNELLY GROUP CONTINUES TO
GROW AS IT MARKS 70 YEARS
When Peter Donnelly opened a taxi service and vehicle repair shop in the small Tyrone village of Caledon in 1947, he could have had
little idea of how the business would evolve in the decades that followed.
Terence and Raymond Donnelly
nown today as the Donnelly Group, the
company is now Northern Ireland’s
largest independent new and used
vehicle dealership with eight sites across
Northern Ireland, and is this year celebrating
its 70th anniversary.
The firm now boasts partnerships with 19
manufacturers across eight sites including
Fiat, Honda, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Suzuki,
Vauxhall and Volkswagen and its most recent
addition, Jaguar.
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Sell cars, fix cars, innovate
Still very much a family business, the Group
is headed up by Peter’s eldest son Terence
who works alongside his brother Raymond at
the company.
Terence paid tribute to their father’s
influence on the success of the business:
“The Donnelly Group today sells more than
15,000 vehicles annually and employs more
than 720 people, making us one of the largest
homegrown Northern Ireland firms.
“My father’s vision was to sell cars; fix cars;
and to innovate. 70 years on and that vision
remains unchanged.
“That ethos of providing first class service,
professionalism, trust, respect and innovation
remains as true today as in 1947 and is the
reason we enjoy such strong relationships
with our manufacturer partners and our loyal
customer base.”
A business model based on franchise
partners
The business remained based in Caledon
for many years and it was in 1959 Peter
Donnelly welcomed his first manufacturing
partner, Austin, laying the foundations for the
Group’s business model today.
“Our father prepared the business to be
ready for the future and we have continued
this ability to think ahead and educate our
customers on the everchanging trends of the
industry.
“We were very heavily involved with the
ecar project in Northern Ireland which
resulted in funding for charging points across
the province. This was a huge step in
“My father’s vision was to sell cars; fix cars; and to innovate. 70 years on and that vision remains unchanged. That ethos of
providing first class service, professionalism, trust, respect and innovation remains as true today as in 1947 and is the reason
we enjoy such strong relationships with our manufacturer partners and our loyal customer base.” Terence Donnelly
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