Our roundup of the latest family business news from Cumbria.

Westmorland on a high


Westmorland Limited is looking forward to a good 2017 after the company posted strong results for 2016. The company - which owns The Rheged Centre, near Penrith and Tebay Services, off the M6 as well as Gloucester Services and Cairn Lodge, near Lanark - saw a growth in turnover to £92.9m in the year to June 2016, up from £71.8m the year before. It saw its pre-tax profit grow to £6.1m, up from £3.6m.

The year saw the first full year of trading at Gloucester Services and Cairn Lodge’s first full year of trading under Westmorland’s ownership.

A new chief executive will join the firm in April. Rob Swyer, who started his career with Mars and has worked with Asda and Pets at Home, was most recently retail director with Halfords. Chief Executive Sarah Dunning will become chairman. The company also has plans to develop a new HQ in Cumbria, complete with kitchens to allow suppliers and in-house teams to further develop what the firm has to offer its customers.

Hiring for winners


Luscombe Plant Hire based in Ulverston has been recognised as one of the best in the business. It was named Outstanding Single Depot Hire Company at the Executive Hire Show, beating off more than 700 other competitors from all overthe UK.

The company was set up in 2001 as a side project to the Luscombe family’s main business installing playgrounds. It has become so successful that it is now far bigger than the original operation and employs 12 people. The firm was inspected by representatives from another plant hire business who looked at criteria including the quality of its depot in North Lonsdale Road, how welcoming the staff were, the quality of the equipment and how it was maintained, and how the firm marketed itself. This involved a number of visits from mystery shoppers.

Lloyd named top retailer


Lloyd Motor Group has has received praise from three different luxury car manufacturers. The family firm, which has its headquarters in Carlisle and branches throughout the north of England and southern Scotland, has seen dealerships within the group take the ‘BMW retailer of the year’ and ‘Land Rover dealer of the year’ titles as well as third spot in the ‘Jaguar retailer of the year’ contest, all handed out by the respective manufacturers.

In addition, the company has just reopened its Cockermouth dealership following a refurbishment – which saw staff working in portable buildings during construction – and is set to open its new Carlisle BMW showroom this month. The firm was set up in in 1976 and is owned by the Lloyd family. The company also has dealerships for new MINI, Honda and Volvo vehicles and also sells used cars.

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