1 948 – the year the first monkey went to space. Burma gained its independence from the UK and Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated. Harry Truman won the US Presidential Election and Laurence Olivier's Hamlet won the Best Picture Oscar.
And, it was also the year that Mr Woodhouse and Mr Barton opened their first Sandicliffe service station. Having been a fixture in Loughborough since taking over Gillotts back in the mid 1960s, 2012 is a big year for the East Midlands' motor retailer.
After a £1 million refurbishment, Sandicliffe's state-of-the- art new premises open in November, giving East Midlands motorists more choice, better service and, for the first time, a cup of freshly brewed coffee and some lunch.
Reg Tutt, managing director of Sandicliffe, the leading East Midlands new and used car specialists, said: "We have come a long way since our humble beginnings. In the last sixty four years we've grown from being a small, two-man operation in Stapleford to recently appearing in the UK's Top 250 companies list.
"Loughborough has been an important location for us and we couldn't have grown without the support and loyalty of all our local new and used car, service and commercial vehicle customers."
Since Sandicliffe opened their first garage in 1948 – coincidentally the last time the Olympic Games were in London – they have grown to become one of the country's leading motor specialists. The seven-acre site in Loughborough has provided new and used cars, servicing, MoTs and repairs to Loughborough drivers for almost fifty years. Now, in the year the Olympics returned to London, the centre sees its biggest makeover.
As well as offering bigger and better new car showrooms, Sandicliffe's new Loughborough dealership will host all the latest 2013 Ford, Mazda and Nissan models. The state of the art interiors are cleaner and warmer and allow customers easier access to the new cars. And, there's also loads more parking at the site.
In addition to superb new car facilities including a stylish and modern Nissan showroom, a brand new used car centre will offer Loughborough drivers a superb choice of used models. The site also features a superb used commercial vehicles centre, a specialist repair and bodyshop, budget tyres, an MoT centre and a leading parts department.
Mr Tutt from Sandicliffe, the Nissan, Ford and Mazda experts, added: "We've designed our new Loughborough centre with our customers in mind. It's easier to browse our choice of new and used cars, simpler to park and we can offer a bigger choice of models.
"In addition, we've also opened our first on-site restaurant, Peppercorns. Whether you're a Sandicliffe customer or you just fancy popping in for a cup of tea and a jacket potato, you'll be able to enjoy great food and drink – all in the same place."
While Sandicliffe's Loughborough launch weekend is all about celebrating the company's state of the art premises, the local car specialists are also heading back over sixty years to celebrate the business's humble beginnings.
Nigel Falkiner, head of marketing at Sandicliffe, said: "To celebrate the early days of Sandicliffe, we'll have loads of special treats for customers visiting our Loughborough centre on the launch weekend of November 16-18.
"We'll have a range of vintage vehicles and memorabilia on display including a Ford Model T, a Model A Ford, classic fire engines and other 1940s vehicles. We'll have various charity events to raise money for Rainbows and a host of local celebrities will also be popping in.
"We're looking forward to welcoming the Mayor of Loughborough to the opening, as well as rugby star Geordan Murphy and legendary local cricketer Paul Nixon, who will be signing copies of his latest book. Kids will be able to have their face painted and you'll also be able to see the Olympic Torch for one last time."
As well as plenty of memorabilia, Sandicliffe will offer some amazing 1948 deals for one weekend only. Right across the site, customers will be able to snap up bargains at post-war prices. Cups of tea and coffee in the new Peppercorns restaurant will be priced as they were 64 years ago, but that's only the start.
There are a range of 1948 offers across the whole site. For example, whatever used car you choose, you will pay the 1948 equivalent price of just £12.84 to add a full one year warranty to it. You could pay the 1948 price of just £2 for your next MoT with Sandicliffe's voucher that is valid until Christmas Eve 2012. Or, if you buy three tyres, you will get the fourth at a special 1948 price.
Mr Falkiner from Sandicliffe, the new and used car specialists, added: "We have some fantastic offers to celebrate our relaunch including a range of very special 1948 prices. Our Nissan showroom is offering three-year service plans at 1948 price when you buy a new car – equivalent to just £9.78 for a Qashqai or £6.47 for a Micra.
"We'll also be offering £1,948 off some of our most popular new cars. So, if you're looking for a real motoring bargain this winter, head to Sandicliffe where our prices are – for a weekend at least – heading back in time."
While Sandicliffe have been in business since back in 1948, their Loughborough story begins in the mid 1960s. Gillotts Garage was already a much loved Loughborough name when it was taken over by Sandicliffe in 1966. The four-acre site was rebranded to Sandicliffe and Loughborough drivers were able to buy new and used Fords, have their car repaired, serviced and MoTd and fill up with petrol at the Derby Road filling station.
Back in early 1966, the Beatles' Day Tripper topped the charts, Harold Wilson was Prime Minister and England were still trying to win their first World Cup. Sandicliffe's Loughborough site was just four acres in size and the biggest selling new cars were Ford's Anglia, Cortina, Corsair and Zodiac models. One of Sandicliffe's biggest early orders was from local business Fisons who purchased 14 Ford Cortinas in the spring of 1966.
The used car centre had a great choice of used models. You could have picked up a 1963 Ford Corsair in aqua blue-white for £575, a 1964 Ford Anglia Super in blue for £575 or a 1962 Austin Mini for £280. You could even have snapped up a 'sold as seen' 1952 grey Morris Oxford for the princely sum of £20.
Tom Barton, one of Sandicliffe's family directors, said: "Loughborough was Sandicliffe's third site and we've been at this same location in Loughborough for 46 years. Astonishingly, we have four employees today who were with Gillotts when we took them over back in 1966.
"An average mechanic would have earned £8 per week when we took over the garage and, as we have grown, we're now up to around 180 employees on the site. We've been an important job creator for Loughborough over the years and our branch's turnover has increased from £200,000 in 1966 to approaching £30 million in 2012."
Since 1966, the site has significantly grown in size. A caravan sales building, 23 allotments and three houses have disappeared in the last 46 years as the company have grown the site and widened the services offered to local drivers. While the Loughborough site has been a Ford dealership for almost fifty years, the company added a Mazda dealership when the busy petrol station closed in 2010 and a brand new state-of- the-art Nissan showroom in 2012.
Mr Barton from Sandicliffe, the new Nissan, Mazda and Ford specialists, added: "Over nearly fifty years, Sandicliffe have been an integral part of Loughborough, employing hundreds of local people and helping thousands with repairs, services and great deals on new and used cars.
"Just as the Corsair and Cortina are models of the past, I don't expect we'll be selling the new Focus and Fiesta in 46 years from now. Still, Sandicliffe's Loughborough site continues to go from strength to strength and I look forward to new generations of mechanics and motor specialists maintaining Sandicliffe's excellent local reputation five decades from now."
Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2012/11/17/company-celebrates-decades-of-top-service/
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