Vertu Motors

Vertu Motors plc is a car dealership group established in 2006 in the United Kingdom which currently trades under the brand name Vertu. It is listed on the Alternative Investment Market.

Vertu Motors plc

Company type	Public
Traded as	LSE: VTU
Founded	2006; 19 years ago (2006)[1]
Headquarters	Fifth Avenue Business Park Fifth Avenue Gateshead
Key people	Robert Forrester (CEO)
Website	www.vertumotors.com

The company began trading in 2007 after acquiring Bristol Street Motors, a Birmingham-based car dealership that was originally founded in the city back in 1924, and which had expanded to include sites across the country.^[2]

The growth of the company moved up a gear with the purchase of the Yorkshire-based dealership Farnell Land Rover in 2013.^[3] They were rebranded as Vertu Land Rover in 2021.^[4]

In 2018, Vertu acquired Hughes Group Holdings and its subsidiary Hughes of Beaconsfield^[5] and the company has continued to grow since then with a number of acquisitions both small and large, including major expansion in the South West with the purchase of Helston Garages in 2022^[6] and Rowes Garage Ltd in 2023.^[7]

The addition of Burrows Motors Company in Yorkshire^[8] saw the Vertu portfolio increase to more than 200 individual sites across England and Scotland.

The company represents a wide range of manufacturers and now operates dealerships exclusively under the Vertu name following a brand consolidation programme carried out in early 2025.^[9]

Up to that point, Vertu had operated three separate retail brands but after celebrating its centenary in 2024, the Bristol Street Motors name disappeared from dealerships in April 2025 when they were all rebranded to Vertu; creating one network of dealerships across the country. ^[10]

The Macklin Motors brand, which had launched in 2010 and ^[11] stretched from Ayr in the West across to Edinburgh in the East, had earlier rebranded as Vertu in February 2025.^[12]

Alongside the retail side of the business, Vertu also operates a range of ancillary businesses that include Vansdirect^[13] and Wiperblades.co.uk.^[14]

Dealerships/Manufacturers

Following the brand consolidation, Vertu now operates an expansive network of dealerships that stretches across England and Scotland ^[15] and which all run under the Vertu name.

The only exception is in Exeter, where the Carrs Ferrari site is Vertu-owned.

As of June 2025, Vertu operates dealerships representing the following manufacturers:

• Audi – a single dealership located in Hereford
• BMW – a total of seven sites that includes dealerships in Sunderland, Yeovil and York
• BYD – a pair of sites in Gloucester and Worcester
• Citroen – eight sites that include dealerships in Macclesfield and Northampton
• CUPRA – three dealerships including Carlisle
• Dacia – nine dealerships stretching from Dunfermline down to Plymouth
• Ford – more than 20 dealerships including Glasgow, Birmingham and Wigan
• Honda – a network of 20 dealerships that includes Lincoln and Truro
• Hyundai – eleven dealerships that include Banbury and Edinburgh
• Kia – four sites including Bradford and Barnsley
• Land Rover – a total of ten dealerships including Bolton, Nelson and Guiseley
• Mazda – four dealerships that include Hamilton and Sheffield
• Mercedes-Benz – including dealerships in Ascot and Reading
• MG – including a dealerships in Beaconsfield and Chesterfield
• MINI – running alongside BMW dealerships in the likes of Bridgwater and Teesside
• Nissan – a dozen dealerships that include Widnes and Ilkeston
• Peugeot – including dealerships in Launceston, Harlow and Paisley
• Renault – a dozen sites including Exeter and Leicester
• SEAT – including dealerships in Darlington and Derby
• Skoda – three dealerships including Chesterfield
• smart – two sites in Beaconsfield and Reading
• Toyota – eleven dealerships that include Ayr and Loughborough
• Vauxhall – nearly 20 sites that include Hexham, Lichfield and Waltham Cross
• Volkswagen – which includes sites in Leeds and Skipton
• Volvo – across the South West in the likes of Barnstaple and Taunton

There are also used car sites in both Derby and Tamworth that run under the Vertu Motornation name.

Partnerships

Vertu has a range of different partnerships across the worlds of sport and entertainment, both at a brand and a local level. One of Vertu's main partnerships revolves around the BTCC, where the company has backed the EXCELR8 team since 2021 and took up the role of title sponsor for the 2022 campaign,^[16] where it secured the title with Tom Ingram. Having previously competed under the Bristol Street Motors name, the team reverts to running as Team VERTU from the 2025 season.^[17]

The company is also the title sponsor of the MINI CHALLENGE, a role it adopted from the start of 2023.^[18]

Other motorsport-related partnerships saw Vertu sponsor Channel 4 F1 from 2020-2022 through the Bristol Street Motors and Macklin Motors brands, whilst the Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing team competed in the 2022 W Series season with drivers Alice Powell and Jessica Hawkins.^[19]

Vertu also operates a number of partnerships in football, the biggest of which saw it named as the Official Car Dealer of the English Football League in November 2023,^[20] with the EFL Trophy being referred to as the Bristol Street Motors Trophy for the 2023/24 season group stage and the Vertu trophy for the knock-out rounds.^{[citation needed]}

As part of Vertu's brand consolidation, the competition was then renamed as the Vertu Trophy in November 2024.^[21]

The company also has long-running partnerships with a number of clubs, including Burnley FC,^[22] Sunderland FC^[23] and Plymouth Argyle,^[24] whilst in December 2024, it signed a multi-year strategic partnership agreement with Birmingham City F.C.^[25] Previous football partners include the likes of Middlesbrough FC,^[26] Hearts^[27] and Hibernian FC.^[28]

Vertu sponsors the Newcastle Eagles^[29] basketball team, whose home stadium is now called the Vertu Motors Arena, whilst it has a relationship with the Scottish side Caledonia Gladiators.^[30]

Cricket relationships with Yorkshire County Cricket Club.^[31], Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club^[32] and Somerset County Cricket Club^[33] - as well as a deal with Exeter Chiefs^[34] Rugby Club - round out an expansive sports portfolio.

Vertu sponsors two entertainment venues; a founding partner^[35] of Co-op Live in Manchester and has naming rights over the atrium area known as Vertu Place.^[36] and is also a partner of the Newcastle Theatre Royal.^[37]

Awards

Vertu has secured numerous awards^[38] through the years across its different brands, including:

• 2015 – Best Retailer Digital Customer Experience, Auto Trader Click Awards
• 2016 – Best Retailer Group, Jaguar UK Awards
• 2017 – Motability Dealer Group of the Year
• 2019 - Best Customer Experience, Auto Trader Retailer Awards
• 2019 - Motability Website of the Year
• 2019 – Best Van Leasing Broker, Leasing Broker Federation Awards
• 2021 - Best Used Car Online Sales Experience, Used Car Awards
• 2021 – League Leader (Worcester), Citroen United By Excellence Awards
• 2022 – Group Customer Excellence, Hyundai Motor UK Awards
• 2022 - Social Media of the Year, Motor Trader Industry Awards
• 2022 - Dealer Website of the Year (Franchised), Motor Trader Industry Awards
• 2022 - Regional Retailer of the Year (Truro), Volvo Champions Awards
• 2022 – Customer Experience Team of the Year (Taunton), Volvo Champions Award
• 2023 – Business Leader of the Year (Robert Forrester), Automotive Management Awards
• 2023 – Retailer of the Year (Sunderland), BMW Motorrad MOJO Awards
• 2023 – Social Media of the Year, Motor Trader Industry Awards
• 2024 – Retail Sales Centre of the Year (Yeovil), MINI Retailer of the Year Awards
• 2024 – EV Retailer of the Year, Carwow Inside Line Awards
• 2024 – Best Customer Experience: Group, Carwow Inside Line Awards
• 2024 – Outstanding Achievement Award (Robert Forrester), Motor Trader Industry Awards