News 12 www.aftermarketonline.net July/August 2024 In association with GSF to open national distribution centre GSF Car Parts has confirmed it is set to open a 500,000 sq ft national distribution centre in Wolverhampton. The milestone development, announced on May 21, comes after GSF’s acquisition last October by private equity firm Epiris. CEO of GSF, Steve Horne, said the new facility is part of moves to “rapidly awaken the sleeping giant of the UK aftermarket”. The facility, whose mezzanine floor can be expanded to 750,000 sq ft, brings together office space, advanced logistics capabilities, a dock and eightlevel access loading doors, plus parking for nearly 700 cars and HGVs combined. A GSF spokesperson told Aftermarket the facility is expected to come on stream in the fourth quarter of this year. The announcement came off the back of a period of rapid growth for the car parts distributor, which now has more than 185 branches and 3,000 team members across the country. GSF executive chairman Sukhpal Ahluwalia said: “From the first day, we knew that we needed a new national distribution centre to support our ambitious growth plans. “Less than a year after acquiring GSF Car Parts, we have got that done. The speed with which we have managed to complete this important step is validation of the amazing team that we have at GSF.” Meanwhile, GSF announced a 30% year-to-date increase in sales of automotive exhausts compared to 2023 — telling Aftermarket the surge reflected the increasing popularity of its A2A brand. A2A is manufactured exclusively by a leading OEM/OES provider. A GSF spokesperson said the record increase highlighted the company’s tracking of growth in the market, as opposed to a general perception that the auto exhaust sector is declining. In addition to enhancing automotive parts, GSF said its investment in staff training and increased delivery frequencies is underpinning business growth. Lead battery giant GS Yuasa has launched a fresh campaign to boost the brand’s presence in the automotive, fire and security and UPS markets. Yuasa, whose European HQ is in Swindon, announced on June 3 an update of its ‘upgrade to Yuasa’ campaign that was first rolled out in 2021. The campaign targets several industry sectors in addition to trade customers and automotive distributors and technicians. GS Yuasa Battery Europe moved to the 178,500 sq ft Swindon facility from the group’s factory in Wales last year. The company oversees the group’s six European companies and Yuasa said the move was designed to strengthen finance, supply chain and IT operations across the continent in support of the group’s ambitions to increase its market share in all markets and regions. James Douglas, European group marketing manager at GS Yuasa Battery Europe, said the company is set on solidifying and expanding the brand’s presence throughout Europe, targeting new customers and partnerships that enable mutual growth in the battery business. “Opting for a Yuasa battery, or choosing GS Yuasa as your partner, represents an upgrade in every sense — enhancing product performance, service quality, and business outcomes,” Douglas said. GS Yuasa in fresh push to expand battery brand
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