Carcraft site sale to bring 200 jobs creating new Black Country showroom
Two hundred jobs will be created in the Black Country after the former Carcraft site was bought by a car sales giant.
Trade Centre Wales has taken over the 13-acre site in Wednesbury, which closed following the collapse of Carcraft last year, and will open a new showroom.
Chairman Mark Bailey flew into Wednesbury on a helicopter last week to view the company's new purchase.
The firm, which is the largest car seller in Wales, confirmed it had bought the Carcraft site and would be creating 200 jobs.
The deal is a major boost for the Black Country following the loss of Carcraft, which had been one of the most popular used car chains in the region for more than a decade.
The closure of the Darlaston Road showroom resulted in the loss of around 60 jobs, with 500 going across the company as a whole.
A spokesman for Trade Centre Wales said: "I can confirm Trade Centre Wales has acquired the site owned by the UK Car Group."
The spokesman added the new centre would trade under a different brand name, rather than Trade Centre Wales.
The name has not yet been revealed and an opening date is also yet to be confirmed.
Business expert Ninder Johal, who is a member of the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership, hailed the deal.
He said: "This is the latest bit of good news for the region and is particularly welcome at this time of year. This also reflects the strong automotive sector that the Black Country enjoys, with car sales registrations up and a generally very buoyant supply chain."
Wednesbury councillor Elaine Costigan said: "It is great that they have chosen Wednesbury as their hub.
"The jobs are needed and it is just great for the whole area. We are planning to meet with the owners next week.
"People are quite excited to know what the site is going to be."
Carcraft, which sold more than 12,000 a year vehicles across the UK, plunged into administration after recording heavy losses of around £8 million.
The firm was founded in 1951 and opened the Wednesbury site in 2001, employing more than 200 there at its peak.
Trade Centre Wales has its headquarters in Neath, south Wales, and has two other showrooms in the principality.
