Waylands accelerates growth with new Volvo dealership, eyes higher AM100 ranking

Fast-growing Waylands Automotive is poised to climb higher in the AM100 rankings after acquiring its sixth Volvo dealership.

The business has bought Volvo Gloucester from Johnson Cars for an undisclosed sum, further cementing its partnership with the Swedish brand.

This marks the second acquisition from Johnsons Cars following Waylands’ purchase of Volvo Cars Swindon in 2018.

Since acquiring its first Volvo dealership in Reading in November 2017 and Fawcetts Volvo in May 2018, Waylands has steadily expanded its Volvo representation across the south of England and climbed its way into the AM100.

John O’Hanlon, Waylands CEO, said: “We have a longstanding relationship with Volvo and are very proud to represent the luxury vehicle manufacturer at a number of existing Waylands sites across the south.

“As a site, Gloucester is a great fit for us, and is well placed to serve customers from across the south west.”

The new acquired dealership, which will remain at its Cole Avenue site, will be rebranded as Waylands Volvo Gloucester and will retain all its colleagues under Waylands ownership.

O’Hanlon added: “Honesty and integrity, focus and care sit at the heart of our values and we look forward to welcoming new customers and colleagues to Waylands.”

The group now represents Volvo, Polestar, Kia and MG at 12 franchise points across the south of England.

Earlier this year at the AM Awards, Waylands scooped the Best Dealer Group of the Year (up to 10 sites) award for an incredible sixth consecutive time as well as the trophy for Best Online Consumer Experience (Franchised) and Retailer of the Year.

O'Hanlon has been open about the business’s ambitions to reach £250 million  in turnover with the help of existing and new OEM partners such as Polestar with whom it opened a new store in Bristol last year.

O’Hanlon has also said the group was “unashamedly” investing heavily in its car dealership properties.

The AM Awards-winning retail group created a new flagship dealership for the Swedish brand at Great Western Way, Swindon, dealership in early 2023.

“For Volvo we’ve now done four, this will be the fifth, and every one’s been multi-million," O'Hanlon said at the time. "Unashamedly, we’ve been spending a lot of money in and around property, but that’s important because we want environments that our customers want to come to and our teams want to work in.”

The dealership group said that by June 2024, every Wayland business will have received refurbishment within the last four years.