 | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| LSE: VTU | |
| Founded | 2006; 19 years ago (2006)[1] |
| Headquarters | |
Key people | Robert Forrester (CEO) |
| Website | www |
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 theAlternative Investment Market and was named as Retailer of the Year at the 2025Autotrader Retailer Awards.[2]
The company began trading in 2007 after acquiringBristol 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.[3]
The growth of the company moved up a gear with the purchase of the Yorkshire-based dealership Farnell Land Rover in 2013.[4] They were rebranded as Vertu Land Rover in 2021.[5]
In 2018, Vertu acquired Hughes Group Holdings and its subsidiary Hughes of Beaconsfield[6] 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[7] and Rowes Garage Ltd in 2023.[8]
The addition of Burrows Motors Company in Yorkshire[9] 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.[10]
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.[11]
TheMacklin Motors brand, which had launched in 2010 and[12] stretched fromAyr in the West across toEdinburgh in the East, had earlier rebranded as Vertu in February 2025.[13]
Alongside the retail side of the business, Vertu also operates a range of ancillary businesses that include Vansdirect[14] and Wiperblades.co.uk.[15]
Following the brand consolidation, Vertu now operates an expansive network of dealerships that stretches across England and Scotland[16] and which all run under the Vertu name.
The only exception is inExeter, where the CarrsFerrari site is Vertu-owned.
As of June 2025, Vertu operates dealerships representing the following manufacturers:
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 theBTCC, where the company has backed theEXCELR8 team since 2021 and took up the role of title sponsor for the2022 campaign,[17] where it secured the title withTom Ingram. Having previously competed under the Bristol Street Motors name, the team reverts to running as Team VERTU from the 2025 season.[18]
The company is also the title sponsor of theMINI CHALLENGE, a role it adopted from the start of 2023.[19]
Other motorsport-related partnerships saw Vertu sponsorChannel 4 F1 from 2020-2022 through the Bristol Street Motors and Macklin Motors brands, whilst the Click2Drive Bristol Street Motors Racing team competed in the2022 W Series season with driversAlice Powell andJessica Hawkins.[20]
Vertu also operates a number of partnerships in football, the biggest of which saw it named as the Official Car Dealer of theEnglish Football League in November 2023,[21] with theEFL 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.[22]
The company also has long-running partnerships with a number of clubs, includingBurnley FC,[23]Sunderland FC[24] andPlymouth Argyle,[25] whilst in December 2024, it signed a multi-year strategic partnership agreement withBirmingham City F.C.[26] Previous football partners include the likes ofMiddlesbrough FC,[27]Hearts[28] andHibernian FC.[29]
Vertu sponsors theNewcastle Eagles[30] basketball team, whose home stadium is now called theVertu Motors Arena, whilst it has a relationship with the Scottish sideCaledonia Gladiators.[31]
Cricket relationships withYorkshire County Cricket Club.,[32]Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club[33] andSomerset County Cricket Club[34] - as well as a deal withExeter Chiefs[35] Rugby Club - round out an expansive sports portfolio.
Vertu sponsors two entertainment venues; a founding partner[36] ofCo-op Live in Manchester and has naming rights over the atrium area known as Vertu Place.[37] and is also a partner of theNewcastle Theatre Royal.[38]
Vertu has secured numerous awards from manufacturers and the motoring press[39] through the years across its different brands, including: