The Farmers Mart Summer 2017 - Issue 51 | Page 30

Farm News Pennine Promise Pays Off Pennine Autos may seem like an example of quick success. And owners Mark John and James Feather, in their newly refurbished premises at the old Rockwood garage and latterly Garden Centre at Grange Moor near Lepton on the A642, have enjoyed steady progress and success; but not without a lot of hard work and dedication to the business. Mark John and James Feather 30 Summer 2017 www.farmers-mart.co.uk » » THE TWO THEN FRIENDS BOTH ALWAYS shared a keen interest in Land Rovers and other 4x4’s. James was a truck driver working alongside his father Kevin in the family business, Feathers Transport. Mark was sales director for a local company and a very keen off-road enthusiast. Both had always wanted to combine their passion for Land/Range rovers and set up a business to service the growing used market. Both of them had been dabbling a bit as a hobby but in early 2008 the two of them took the plunge and Pennine Autos was born, initially in a single unit in Shelf with four cars. During the next four years they worked tirelessly looking for, buying ,servicing and selling Land Rovers etc. One thing they were absolutely committed to was striving to give a better service than main dealers wherever possible. This certainly paid off as they quickly established a number of regular customers and many new ones on the back of word of mouth satisfaction and also because their contacts were able to source particular models. The Pennine promise was then - and is still to this day -to offer vehicles at the right price and in only absolutely tip-top condition. With this level of commitment and increasing sales they outgrew Shelf and moved in 2012 to two units at Low Moor in Bradford where they had the capacity to comfortably house 22 cars at any one time. Expansion continued and within 12 months they took on another extra bigger unit. James and Mark had always wanted to own their own premises and have somewhere with scope to grow and future proof the business, so when Rockwood came up for sale it was if it was meant to be – the ideal location and ample space for growth. They negotiated for Rockwood despite it being in need of major refurbishment including structural alteration and repair. Rockwood is now in pristine condition sporting new roof, interior, hard standing area and perimeter fencing plus superb frontage, clear signage and customer lounge area inside. Buying from Pennine