Vauxhall dealership Select@Taylors of Spalding will be closing at the end of October

A garage will ‘sadly’ close after more than four decades in the town.

Rising costs and supply issues have seen the Select @ Taylors of Spalding Vauxhall dealership reach ‘an inevitable point’ where it would be ‘uneconomic’ to continue operating, according to director Tim Taylor.

The site will officially shut on October 31, with staff relocating to other roles in the business or ‘seeking alternative employment’.

Mr Taylor said the decision came as energy costs at the Pinchbeck Road site are due to rise by £70,000 this year.

Coupled with supply problems in the industry, the business would not be able to sell enough vehicles to make the numbers add up.

“We’re at an inevitable point where the costs of running a franchise are ever increasing,” Mr Taylor explained. “It’s become uneconomic.

“The overheads of running the site - a lovely site and big site in the town centre - are increasing. Gas and electric are increasing at a staggering rate.

“For that site alone it will increase by £70,000 per year just for gas and electricity. That’s a big factor.”

On top of rising costs, a global shortage of computer chips, plus supply chain issues, have caused a car shortage.

“We can’t supply the amount of vehicles to make it economical,” Mr Taylor added. “It’s a shortage that’s not easing. We suspect that will be the case for the next 18 months, with the information we’re receiving. If we piece it all together it’s sadly unsustainable.”

Another problem facing the industry is skilled workers ‘moving out the industry or retiring’, Mr Taylor added.

“Technicians are probably the hardest people replace at the moment. You can’t just replace them with people who don’t have the skills and there’s no quick fix for that.”

Mr Taylor took over the Pinchbeck Road site on his 21st birthday, which would have reached its 42-year anniversary in December.

Taylors also operate a Peugeot franchise in Boston, a Vauxhall franchise in Butterwick and a Ford franchise in Skegness.

“At our other dealerships we’ll be offering work that we have done (in Spalding),” said Mr Taylor.

“To our existing customers, we’d love to look after them going forward.

“We would also like to thank all our customers for all their support (at Spalding) over the years.

“Some have supported us for the length of time we’ve been there.

“We are prepared to do whatever we can to accommodate and assist them in the future. It’ll be a sad day but we can’t ignore the facts staring us in the face.”

Discussing the staff currently employed at the Spalding site, Mr Taylor continued: “Some staff, we’ve managed to relocate in the group and some staff have found alternative employment.

“Some have left or are in the process of leaving. One or two have still not made their mind up what they want to do yet. They are all skilled people.”

The Pinchbeck Road site is owned by the company and it has been confirmed it will be put up for sale.