MINEHEAD'S Autohaus Volkswagen camper van manufacturer is set to double production after expanding its factory by more than three times its original size.

The moves comes with the support of a £150,000 loan from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.

Launched in 1994, Autohaus is one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of VW camper vans.

It produces more than 150 mobile home camper vans per year from its site in Minehead, on the Vennlands Estate.

The business is now able to manufacture 300 vehicles per year and has also launched a new van and car hire service which is predicted to increase revenue from £3million to £4million in the next 12 months.

Autohaus has also added to its workforce, creating five new jobs at its Minehead facility, bringing its headcount to 15.

Tony Payne, managing director at Autohaus said: “The growing trend in staycations trend has played a large part in our recent success.

"Holidaymakers are increasingly looking to enjoy the British coastlines and countryside and want to do so in comfort and style.

"The size of our existing manufacturing warehouse restricted us from capitalising on the opportunity, as we simply didn’t have the capacity to take on any more orders.

“We have been able to expand our production line and take on more customers.

"The extra space means we'll be able to continue our growth.”