John Clark Motor Group tops automotive Sunday Times Grant Thornton Top Track 250

John Clark Motor Group has topped the Sunday Times Grant Thornton Top Track 250 for automotive companies and placed third in the overall list.

The Top Track 250 ranks the UK’s leading privately-owned medium sized companies based on their sales performance over the last 12 months.

The full 250 list featured many dealer groups, independent dealers and automotive brands.

Car dealerships were the largest single sector in the league table with 42 dealers featured in the top 250. Other automotive firms who made the list included Aston Martin, McLaren Automotive and the IM Group.

Motorpoint, the used car supermarket, placed second among automotive brands and was in eighth position overall, Perrys took third place for automotive and 16th overall.

Mark Carpenter, managing director of Motorpoint, said: “This accolade simply wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication and determination of each member of the Motorpoint team whose unwavering commitment to the business enables us to deliver a truly unique car buying experience for our customers based on choice, value and service.”

Motorpoint recently announced that it is investing £5m opening its ninth site in Birtley, south of Newcastle, in early November. A 10th site is scheduled to come online during the first half of 2016 as part of Motorpoint’s ongoing expansion plans.

Perrys is also in the Top Track 250.

Ken Savage, Perrys' chairman, said: “It’s a huge achievement for the group, one that can be attributed to the hard work of all of our 1,850 members of staff.

“The Sunday Times Top Track 250 is an important league table and it’s great to be one of the highest dealer groups to make the list.

“In the last 12 months we’ve added a new franchise to Perrys as well as acquiring the GK Group, extending our scale into the East Midlands and strenghtening our Ford dealer network.

“We believe that the group’s ongoing success can be credited to its commitment to the core values of customer care, high-quality vehicles and staff retention.

“Perrys’ growth will continue into 2016 when our brand new £7m multi-franchise showroom will open in Preston, just off the M6.”

Swansway Group, has risen up the list for the sixth consecutive year, this time from 58th place to 43rd and 13th in the top automotive brands.

David Smyth, Swansway director, said: “It’s great to see businesses outside the southeast performing so well and for Swansway to rise up the rankings for the sixth consecutive year is a brilliant result. Our business operates on its values of caring, honest and proud and this is very definitely a ‘proud’ moment.”

Glyn Hopkin’s record full-year 2014 sales of £351.4 million secured the group a 26-place rise to 62nd in this year’s league table.

Glyn Hopkin’s turnover for the full year 2015 is expected to exceed £400m, putting the company on track to achieve its goal of a £500m turnover within the next three years.

First-half 2015 profits before tax amounted to £3,536,793, representing an uplift of 19.81% compared to the same period last year.

In the first half of 2015 Glyn Hopkin sold over 8,300 new cars and its rate of growth is almost three times greater than that reported by the rest of the UK motor retail sector.

Fraser Cohen, managing director of Glyn Hopkin, said, “Our organic growth is fuelling our expansion into new territories and with new brands. We have recently opened several new dealerships and created a brand-new Renault and Dacia showroom in Chelmsford.

"To be listed again amongst such prestigious and successful brands is a testament to our continued hard work and effort, and we remain very ambitious. Our figures so far in 2015 suggest our rise up the league table will continue further.”

Fellow dealer Motorline was 64th in the 11th annual list which ranks the UK's private mid-market growth companies with the biggest sales.

It had sales of £333.7 million and profits of £5.8 million in 2014.

“This is a fantastic achievement for the Motorline Group, and one that highlights our strong position in a thriving automotive industry,” said Glen Obee, Motorline Group chairman. “Our ongoing success is a credit to all our employees who have played a huge part in achieving this.”

There are 13 automotive companies in the top 50 alone.