Business

Bushmills car dealer looks to expand family business

Lexy Halliday.
Lexy Halliday. Lexy Halliday.

A CO Antrim car dealer has announced plans to double the size of its business over the next five years, creating up to 40 jobs.

Hallidays of Bushmills has been trading for more than half a century.

Managing director Lexy Halliday said the family-owned business is now seeking to add new franchises to its well-established Citroen, Peugeot and Isuzu brands.

Mr Hallidays is also behind a planning proposal for a new ‘wellness resort’ in Bushmills. His company L&J Eagry entered the planning process in March 2022.

Mr Halliday said the 150-bed hospitality venture would represent an investment of around £57 million.

The businessman’s ambitions are also set on growing the family business.

“We have ambitious plans for the dealership and are looking at a range of options on how we can best achieve this while ensuring consistency of service to our clients and staff,” he said.

“They are incredibly loyal to us. We value them and want to reciprocate that too.

“Halliday’s has been a ‘clicks and mortar’ business since 2015 where we’ve seen an exponential growth in customers ordering from us online.

“In the longer term and in the context of our expansion plans, if a suitable site can be found, it may make sense for our car, commercial and repair business to move to bigger population centres but it’s just too early to say. None of this will happen overnight and if we do move, it will be in a planned and phased way.”