Rowcliffes Taunton leaves town after ‘more than 50 years’

Rowcliffes, on East Reach, has been in the town “for over 50 years” but it has now announced that after the closure on June 30, it will continue to operate at its sites in Walton, Street, and Summerhouse Terrace in Yeovil.

David Malcolm, the group general manager, said “Stellantis have terminated our Vauxhall and Citroen franchises, so we will be re-franchising our Yeovil dealership and have our Subaru and SsangYong franchises that we operate within Walton, Street.”

Mr Malcolm also said: “We are transferring a number of staff to our other sites, and most of the staff have found alternative employment, but there will be a few job losses.”

In a letter sent to his customers, Mr Malcolm said: “I am writing to inform you of the impending closure of our Vauxhall dealership at East Reach, Taunton.

“We will close for business at this site on the 30th of June 2023 but will continue to be fully functional at our sites in Walton, Street, and Summerhouse Terrace, Yeovil.

“The reason this very difficult decision has been taken is not of our making, and I will explain exactly what has happened.

“All of the Stellantis network which now encompasses Vauxhall, Citroen, Peugeot, Fiat, Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, DS, and Maserati were issued 2-year termination notices in May 2021.

“This was to enable them to streamline their newly created organisation into revised geographic areas and terminate some dealers who shared these territories along with a plan to severely reduce the number of partners they deal with.

“We were informed at the end of last year that we would be receiving new contracts for both our Citroen and Vauxhall franchises in June 2023, but last month they changed their mind and have rescinded that commitment, giving our territory and Stellantis franchises to another group.

“We have had about a month’s notice on this action. The result for us is a perfect storm, as the lease on the Taunton premises is up for renewal at the end of July 2023, making it impossible for us to re-franchise in that timescale, so we have had to make the difficult decision to relinquish the lease at Taunton.

“We will have to close the premises at the end of June, to give us time to move everything to Street and Yeovil.

“I must stress, we are not closing down, or selling out to anyone else, contrary to some rumours.”

The general manager went on to explain how the reshuffle of operations will look and outlined how customers can still receive their Vauxhall vehicle work in the Somerset area.

He added: “We will continue to service our Vauxhall customers for the foreseeable future at Street, as we have the Authorised Repairer contract for Vauxhall at that site, which means we are able to carry out all servicing and warranty work and will still carry genuine Vauxhall parts.

“We will operate this alongside our SsangYong and Subaru franchises already at Street.

“We will also run a collection and delivery service, along with our courtesy cars for customers who are slightly further away and still wish to use us at the other sites.

“Our dealership in Yeovil, which holds the Citroen and Vauxhall franchises, will continue as normal till a date can be agreed to terminate the Stellantis franchises at that site.

“We will let you know when that will be, along with an update on which franchises will be moving into our Yeovil site.

“We will of course still have our used car operations at Street and Yeovil and will expand the number of used cars we hold to give our customers old and new a bigger choice.

“They will all still come fully prepared and with a full 12-month warranty as standard.

“We look forward to welcoming you to our premises in Street and Yeovil. Please feel free to give us a call on 01823 250459 if you need any clarification on any of the points I have covered in this letter, and of course to book your car in for work, or make an appointment to come and see our range of vehicles.”