Meet the unluckiest Holden dealer in the country: Business was due to open $6.5million state-of-the-art showroom in May before General Motors pulled the plug
- City Holden in Adelaide had been gearing up to open a $6.5M showroom in May
- On Monday General Motors announced it is axing the car brand after 72 years
- The Newton family ran four successful showrooms that made $100M annually
A Holden car dealership in South Australia had been on the brink of opening a state-of-the-art showroom when General Motors announced it was axing the brand.
City Holden in Adelaide's CBD was among those left high and dry after GM revealed it was 'retiring' the iconic Australian brand by 2021 due to plunging domestic sales and a decision to get out of the right-hand-drive vehicle market.
The family-run business is one of the best performing dealerships in the country and consistently turned over about $100 million a year across four locations.
City Holden in Adelaide (pictured) was blindsided by the decision to axe the Holden brand
City Holden was expecting to open the new $6.5 million 'dealership of the future' on Railway Terrace at Mile End in May this year, they told The Advertiser.
Dealer principal Julian Newton described the new centre as a move towards a boutique showroom experience with a focus on technology.
Mr Newton said: 'There'll be screens and interactivity, iPads, screens. Essentially having a representative range on the floor but being able to showcase the whole lot through technology.
'I'm really excited by what we're doing down there. It's such a great move into the future and it's the next stage of City Holden and the Newton family,' he said.
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GM and Holden have pledged to work closely with all their workers to offer generous redundancy packages to about 600 staff across Australia and New Zealand.
Most of the jobs will be gone by June.
'We are all hurting,' Holden interim Chairman and Managing Director Kristian Aquilina said in an open letter published in newspapers across the country on Tuesday.
The decision to close the brand comes amid plunging domestic sales with demand for Holden vehicles down by almost 29 per cent to just 43,176 in 2019, in a total market down just eight per cent.
GM has committed to providing compensation to Holden dealers to allow them to transition to other brands or close down.
They will also have the opportunity to continue as dedicated Holden service centres with the company to maintain a supply of spare parts for at least 10 years for the 1.6 million Holden cars now on Australian roads.
But with 185 retail outlets in Australia and 31 in NZ, hundreds of workers could lose their jobs in the months ahead if dealers are forced to shut.
City Holden was building (pictured) a state-of-the-art $6.5M showroom set to open in May
