Perrys Group is taking on the Mazda franchise for
Portsmouth. It will open the dealership in early June, filling an open point left when Solent Motor Group went bust last December. Solent had represented Mazda for seven years.

The dealership will open in a former Alfa Romeo showroom which is currently being refurbished. It is next to Perrys’ existing Fiat and Peugeot dealerships. 

Ray Sommerville, Perrys’ managing director, said: “We see Portsmouth and surrounding areas as crucial to our own marketing activities as well as those of Mazda which has a strong brand and will continue to be a strong partner.”

“It is important that Mazda customers are being quickly represented again in what is a key population area in the south,” said Sommerville.

Perrys, the UK’s 15th largest franchised dealer, already represents Mazda in Barnsley, Blackburn, Huddersfield and Preston.

Jeremy Thomson, Mazda UK managing director, said: “This group is big ticket, pro-active, professional, strong on web marketing and very good at face-to-face retailing. We have historical strength along the south coast and this means we have quickly filled a key open point.

“The timing is crucial as the new Mazda3 arrives in May - something which our 157 dealers are looking forward to very much.”

Portsmouth remains an open point for Nissan and Citroën, who were Solent’s other franchises.

A spokesman for Citroën said the company was “actively pursuing a new partner for a very important market.” 

Meanwhile Yeomans Citroën in nearby Fareham is looking after customers in the area. Nissan said the vacancy was “very high on our priority list.”