The largest solus Mazda dealership in Europe has opened in Watford, Hertfordshire. Milcars Mazda, on Otterspool Way, is a £3.5m investment and has 2,500sq m of space dedicated to the Japanese brand.

A former factory, the site can accommodate around 60 new and used cars, with potential to expand to 11 service bays from the five currently in use. Tony Thomas, group general manager at Milcars Mazda, estimates the site will sell between 300-400 new cars and similar number of used in the first year, with a view to increasing this significantly in future years.

“The size of the investment speaks for itself. Mazda are great people to work with and the product is first rate. We are setting our sights high for future business,” Thomas says.

Philip Waring, managing director of Mazda Motors UK, attended the opening with sales director Rob Lindley and Milcars group managing director Chris Ward.

“We’re delighted by Milcar’s confidence in the Mazda brand to make this level of investment,” says Waring. “Would you have seen a dealer committing like this five years ago? I don’t think so. It shows just how good the brand’s perception is now.”

Milcars is a privately owned company, which has been selling prestige cars in North-west London and Hertfordshire for more than 35 years. The company’s association with Mazda began in 1995 when its site in Radlet, Hertfordshire, first began selling the brand.

Five years later Milcars took the franchise to an existing showroom in Watford. A site in Hatfield Road, St Albans, was purchased in 2001 and quickly adopted the Milcars Mazda name with the Watford showroom being sold for redevelopment.

The official May 27 opening of the new dealership also saw the unveiling of the Mazda5 compact MPV, which goes on sale in the UK this month.