Customers of leading Mercedes-Benz Dealer Group Rygor Commercials can now enjoy the benefits of a major refurbishment at the company’s Oxford branch, which offers industry-leading levels of comfort and care.
The £1-million project has entailed a significant extension and complete recladding of the building on Eynsham Road, Cassington, and the addition of a dedicated vehicle handover area with canopy alongside the main entrance.
Inside, meanwhile, the reception, after sales care departments, sales area and offices have been given a complete makeover. Not only is the airy and stylish open plan accommodation welcoming for visitors, but it is also an attractive and efficient environment in which to work for members of the Rygor team.
The 11-bay workshop has benefited, too, with the installation of new brake testing equipment, and roller shutter doors. Rygor is now putting the finishing touches to this element of the project – a dedicated bay will be set aside for Mercedes-Benz X-Class pickup models, while another will be allocated to tachograph calibrations and repairs, and a third for MoT testing of vehicles in the Class 4, 5 & 7 categories, allowing the technical team to offer customers the highest levels of service and convenience.
It is the first time that Rygor has offered MoT services at Oxford. The fact that the workshop remains open until 10pm on weekdays, and lunchtimes on Saturdays, means van customers who prefer to do so can now get their vehicles tested as well as maintained during evenings or on weekends, ensuring maximum uptime so they are always available for use during normal working hours.
Committed to ‘Setting Standards’, Rygor Commercials is one of the UK’s biggest Mercedes-Benz Vans and Mercedes-Benz Trucks Dealers, and additionally responsible – like its fellow members of the manufacturer’s franchised network in Britain – for sales and support of popular FUSO Canter light trucks.
Rygor’s Oxford team is the latest to benefit from a major programme of investment by the company. Recent highlights include the opening of a purpose-built, £4-million flagship branch in Gloucester, and a major refurbishment at Kidderminster, while other facilities – the Dealer operates from no fewer than 11 locations – have also been updated for the benefit of customers and employees alike.
David Ford, Van Sales Manager at Rygor, Oxford, leads a team of committed and knowledgeable sales executives. “The new, open plan layout makes for a greatly improved working environment that promotes easier interaction between departments,” he enthused. “This is something that I, and my colleagues, certainly appreciate, as it fosters teamwork and collaboration here at the branch.
“What’s more, we’re also presenting a stylish and professional face to retail customers, one which accords with the expectations they are entitled to have of the premium brand we represent.
“The enhanced experience starts when they arrive. There’s now plenty of room for parking, and we have our own area in which to display new vehicles from the award-winning
Mercedes-Benz Citan, Vito, Sprinter and X-Class ranges.
“Plus, of course, our smart new handover bay with canopy makes a real statement,” added David. “Given the huge excitement surrounding the recently launched X-Class pickup, and with an all-new Sprinter model arriving this summer, we’re relishing the prospect of introducing many new as well as established customers to the benefits of Mercedes-Benz ownership.”
Service Manager Richard Flanagan is responsible for the smooth running of the workshop at Oxford. The branch is also the base for two Mercedes-Benz Service 24h vans which are allocated to highly-trained technicians who provide free, rapid response emergency breakdown assistance – branded for light commercial vehicle customers as MobiloVan – on a round-the-clock basis.
“If you didn’t know otherwise you’d think we were in a completely new building,” Richard observed. “The branch has been completely transformed and, as a result, it’s a real pleasure to come to work here each day.
“Although it can be difficult to work when construction projects are ongoing, the team really pulled together and persevered because they believed it would be worth it in the end. So it’s proved. Motivation levels within the team have never been higher – they’re all holding their heads that bit higher now, because they’re proud to be working for Rygor Commercials and representing the Mercedes-Benz brand.”
