Spinney celebrates 50 years in motorhomes & caravans

Fifty years ago, the Spinney business began at its original site in Chelford, Cheshire, when Ben and Charlie’s father began a motorhome and car dealership and quickly moved solely into selling motorhomes. 

The company grew and eventually moved to the current site in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, where a new showroom, workshop and facilities were built. As Spinney continued to grow, the family involvement increased, starting with Nick (Ben and Charlie’s older brother), followed by the two younger brothers all working alongside their father, also called Nick. 

“Unfortunately the family experienced some terrible years, loosing Nick junior aged 26 in 2010 to a sudden heart attack and, later, Nick senior aged 56 in 2012 after a battle with cancer. From this date, we headed the business to keep the Spinney legacy going,” explains Ben.

Since then, the business continued to grow by acquiring more outlets. This started with North Staffs Caravans in 2015 and then Flintshire Caravans in 2018. The growth was slowed by Covid but the company was always on the lookout for new locations.

“We have been offered many sites across the UK; however, we waited until the right size, location and, most importantly, cultural match became available,” explains Charlie.

Then, last year, an opportunity arose to acquire the White Arches from administration and Broadlane Kenilworth prior to Broadlane going into administration. 

“We knew that our dad had given us an extremely strong starting point with brilliant foundations. However, we wanted to grow Spinney to be UK-wide and not just northwest based. Both of these locations are very well respected, long-standing dealerships with teams on site who have a very in-depth knowledge of how the industry works... We felt that given the right direction that these sites would flourish and we are seeing that already. We have plans to develop these locations over time.”

And that appetite for growth continues. Although Charlie and Ben currently have no immediate plans to expand, if a suitable location became available, it wouldn't be dismissed. However...

“Our focus and energy currently are centred on looking for ways to improve our customer journey and internally striving for efficiencies to ensure the future of Spinney remains bright. As a company we know we can improve and as a management team we are always looking at how this can be implemented; we remain passionate about being the very best we can be.”

Spinney of course sells the trio of leisure vehicles – motorhomes, caravans and campervans – and, while some dealers are focusing less on caravans, Spinney intends to continue to sell all three. Indeed, 50% of all its sales are caravans. 

While Spinney has grown to become a national dealer group, it remains a family-run business with a culture based on loyalty. Ben explains...

"Our father had a saying that ‘sales sell the first ’van and it’s our service that sells the second, third and fourth ’van’. We have never forgotten these words so are constantly trying to make sure the customers get the service they deserve.”

By retailing a range of leisure vehicles, Spinney has seen first-hand the growth in the popularity of campervans and the subsequent focus on this sector by manufacturers. Ben pointed out another trend amongst buyers. 

“After Covid, we saw a lot of our caravan and motorhome sales came without a part-exchange against the deal and, speaking with our customers, we noticed that these are all first-time buyers.”

And what were these buyers snapping up? The Auto-Trail Expedition 68 is Spinney's best-selling campervan as it offers great value for money. This appetite for value for money and higher specification as standard can be seen in its caravan and motorhome sales, too...

“The Coachman Vogue 575 is our best-selling caravan, as it offers a high level of specification and quality and also comes with extras that are exclusive to Spinney with a unique special in the VIP range. Likewise, the Bailey Adamo 75-4DL is our best-selling motorhome as it offers a versatile layout with a high level of specification.”

As customers’ demands and expectations change, so manufacturers and their dealers must continually adjust their offerings to suit. After 50 years of doing exactly that and continuing to expand to become the nation’s second-largest dealer group and the only one that remains a family business, all the signs are it will continue to go from strength to strength.