Scotland’s oldest established motor group, Macrae & Dick, has opened a new Jaguar showroom at Inverness to serve the Highlands and Islands.

The £250,000 building has display space for five new cars and a hand-over area with room outside for up to 30 used Jaguars.

The investment has transformed Jaguar’s presence in the Highlands with the move to a stand-alone showroom on Harbour Road replacing the former two-car display area which was sandwiched between the group’s Ford and Mazda franchises.

Jaguar general sales manager Andrew Grant has been with the group for 15 years, mainly with Ford. He says the new showroom will lift the annual sales of new Jaguars from around 100 to 130 units with a “significant increase” in used sales.

“The previous Jaguar showroom had display space for only seven cars,” he said. “The new site gives us a huge amount of extra room and we’re planning to push hard on our used Jaguar business.”

Chairman Francis Hamilton and managing director Andy Grzesinski are delighted with the Jaguar expansion.

“It’s an exciting time for Jaguar in the Highlands and the new showroom will help grow our business,” the chairman says. “I’ve seen a huge transformation since the days of British Leyland.

There’s been a significant improvement in the marque’s quality since Ford became involved.” Macrae & Dick has held the Highland Jaguar franchise since 1966 – but those 38 years are just a fraction of the group’s involvement in Scotland’s motor trade.

Formed in 1878 the group is a consistent leader in Scotland and last year turned over £130m, selling almost 5,000 new cars and more than 3,000 used.

Headquartered at Inverness, the group has franchises for Jaguar, Ford, Mazda, Land Rover, Honda, BMW and MG/Rover with outlets as far flung as Stirling, Fort William, Elgin, Perth and Aviemore.