Vardy snaps up two dealerships from rival

Chief executive Peter Vardy - part of a motoring dynasty founded by his late grandfather Reg Vardy - said his family's "excellent relationship" with the Martin family had helped to complete the deal.

Vardy had previously bought Martin's BMW and Mini franchises when he was setting up his own company in 2006.

He said the latest divestment was part of the consolidation strategy with the Martin family's succession plan. No deal value was disclosed.

The latest purchases - in Aberdeen and Edinburgh - take Vardy's chain to nine dealerships in total, including six Vauxhall showrooms.

Vardy, son of Sir Peter Vardy, said: "This is an incredibly exciting time for us. We are all looking forward to working with our new colleagues at the dealerships."

Vardy has previously said that his current head office setup, in Glasgow, could handle about 25 dealerships but, following advice from his father, he would not take on more than 40.

News of the latest expansion came as Lookers - the parent group of rival Scottish chain Taggarts - reported that it was on course to post record half-year results.

Lookers said demand for spare parts was booming in "fragile" markets for new and used cars. The Manchester-based company said its parts distribution business, which works with 2,500 suppliers through 20 UK sites, had given it a "unique position of strength".

The division is providing a "counter cyclical hedge" against a tough wider market as drivers look to keep cars on the road rather than buying another vehicle, Lookers said.

The firm added: "The new and used car retail markets are likely to continue to be affected whilst consumer confidence remains fragile."

Lookers, which has some 5,500 staff and 122 franchised dealerships selling 32 marques including Vauxhall and Ford, added that all parts of the group were trading ahead of plan during the first half of the year despite disruption from January's snow.

Sales volumes of new cars have grown ahead of the 20 per cent increase seen across the wider market while there has been a "continued recovery" in demand for new corporate cars, giving Lookers a chance to further improve its market share.

Shares closed down 0.75p at 48.5p after the trading update, which followed an earlier profits upgrade at the beginning of May.

Shares had risen by as much as 7 per cent in early trading.

Analysts have lifted pre-tax profits forecasts for the year as a whole to 31.8 million - up from the 28.3m posted in 2009 - despite the end of the UK government's cash-for-bangers scheme, which propped up the car market during the recession.

Numis analyst Nick Coulter said Lookers had "reaffirmed the momentum within its new car and parts businesses".

Lookers moved into Scotland in 2003 with the purchase of Taggarts for 5.6m. Taggarts has sites in Glasgow and Motherwell, selling marques including Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo.

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