Arnold Clark Automobiles

The company was founded by Arnold Clark, who opened his first showroom in 1954 in Park Road in Glasgow. In 1963, Arnold Clark Finance was launched.[2] In the 1960s the company began rental vehicles and in 1968 took over Grant, Melrose and Tennant giving the company an accident repair centre.[3]

By 1989, there were twenty two Arnold Clark branches across Central Scotland and one in England. The rental part of the business now had 1400 rental cars and 350 light commercial vehicles.[4] The company also had vehicle contract hire operations in Liverpool and Sheffield.[5] In December 1989, he gained a further 13 dealerships in the North East of Scotland, with the purchase of Ron Hutcheson Motors Ltd.[3][6]

This took the number of people employed by the company to 1300.[5]

In 1994, the company opened its first site in England, in Liverpool.[7] By May 2002, Arnold Clark had 97 dealerships and with annual sales expected to reach £1 billion, with a claim to be Scotland's largest private company[8] although Grampian Country Foods recorded larger sales for the four years following this.[9]

In December 2003, Arnold Clark acquired the training company GTG.[10] By the end of that year, the company employed 6,000 people and operated more than 120 showrooms across the United Kingdom.[11] In April 2005, the company paid a first dividend to the family trust family that it is co owned by.[12]

In May 2006, the company acquired the BMW and MINI specialist Harry Fairbairn, which had dealerships in Giffnock and Irvine.[13] In August 2006, the company opened a car showroom in the regenerated Glasgow Harbour, Europe's largest.[14] By November 2007, it was approaching a £2 billion turnover.[15] In June 2007, it overtook Grampian Country Foods to again become Scotland's biggest private company.[16]

With the announcement of the Vehicle scrappage scheme in August 2009, Arnold Clark expected to create 700 jobs.[17]

By September 2012, the company was expanding through the acquisition of other dealerships. Fleet sales still accounted for a relatively small proportion of the company's business.[18] The takeover of the Weir group in September 2012 also saw the company expand into the market of Mercedes-Benz.[19] Acquisitions also included a site near Aberdeen, and a dealership and bodyshop in Blackpool.[20]

2014 was their sixtieth year of trading and this was marked with the company’s turnover reaching almost £3 billion, with a rise in used car sales partly responsible.[21] They were involved with the 2014 Commonwealth Games as a partner organisation, helping look after the fleet of official vehicles.[22]

In February 2015, the company undertook a rebranding of their buildings.[23] In 2015, the company took over Ness Motors in Inverness, Elgin and Perth.[24] By September 2016, the company had 200 dealerships and 24 franchises, with a staff of 10,000.[25] Arnold Clark never retired from the company, remaining as chairman until his death on 10 April 2017, at the age of 89.[3]

On 31 January 2019, Arnold Clark completed their takeover of The Phoenix Car Company. Phoenix was a family-run car retail group established in 1993, with dealerships of Kia, Hyundai, Honda, SsangYong and Mazda.

In December 2007, the company's Botanic Gardens Garage was designated a category A listed building.[26] It had been built before 1912.[27] The company had plans to demolish the building but later withdrew their plans, and in April 2014, one planning application was granted to convert it into a gym.[28]

The company has a purpose-built head office in Hillington which houses a dealership of Renault, this was completed in 2016.[29]

In October 2009, the company won the "Glasgow Business Award" for Apprentice Employer of the Year.[30]

In May 2016, the company's marketing department was named 'In-House Marketing Team of the Year' at The Drum Awards 2016.[31]

• Official website