Jobs boost for Shrewsbury as vehicle repair firm expands into 'highly sought-after' Battlefield building

The Hampshire-based company, which offers specialist body paint repairs for cars, has completed a move into a refurbished 4,500 square foot industrial unit at Shrewsbury's Battlefield Enterprise Park.

The building at 4 Vernon Drive is the former home of commercial kitchen equipment firm Eric Neville Catering, which put the property up for sale for around £425,000 earlier this year, after going into administration.

The firm already operates in around 15 car dealerships around the country, including at Mercedes Benz in Shrewsbury, and director Paul Thrower says the move means the company can deal directly with retail customers.

“I have about 15 different outlets across the country, ranging from Poole and Brighton on the south coast, to London, Shrewsbury, Doncaster, all over the place, and predominantly in dealers," he said.

“I also have an operation in Basingstoke, which is like this new Shrewsbury unit will be, where we do work for people whose vehicles may have had a ding, a dent or whatever. I also do a lot of insurance work through these operations.

“I’m already aware of the area because I do work for the local Mercedes Benz dealer in Shrewsbury. I have a paint operation in their back of house and have had for many years, so it’s came from there.

“I have some good people that work for me in the area, so it was quite a natural progression to go from working for one dealer in the town to having this unit, to then opening it up to retail customers.

“The unit is the perfect size and has a secure yard to the front. It’s also close to the dealer that I’m already in, so that work can continue. It just ticked a lot of boxes.”

The company’s new Shrewsbury premises was marketed by Shrewsbury-based agency Towler Shaw Roberts, and features a mezzanine workshop and office, with the warehouse including a roller shutter loading door.

Toby Shaw, who handled the letting for TSR, said: “This was a very fast turnaround. After agreeing a sale of the property to its new owner, we were then instructed to market Unit 4 as being available to let.

“It quickly attracted a strong level of interest and we are delighted to have now completed a letting to Paul Thrower from Smart Repair Shops Limited.

“This move to Battlefield Enterprise Park, a continuously expanding and highly sought after commercial area of Shrewsbury, represents an exciting expansion for the company and we wish them every success.”