TSG Motors has built a strong reputation, providing a wide range of vehicle repairs
and servicing for almost 30 years. Employing seven staff, including four family members, the garage caters for a wide range of vehicles.
- Location: Slough
- Services: Servicing, Reepairs, Diagnostics, MOT, Hybrid Technology
- Garage Network: Servicesure Autocentres
Tony Shoard, owner of TSG Motors started his career as a vehicle technician and worked at a dealership before making the break and going it alone as an independent.
His family business has since expanded with success and is now split across two sites: a Servicesure branded fast fit centre, next door to the original TSG mechanical workshop.
We’ve been a Servicesure member ever since it started.
Tony Shoard, garage owner
Intrigued to find out more about the unique setup, we asked Tony what had prompted him to run part of his business under a separate brand.
“We were originally running from just one workshop, but we found that we were missing out on the amount of work Servicesure could actually bring to us.”
“We worked out that we could run a business on the amount of work that we turned away, so we decided to open up a Servicesure workshop as a fast fit centre alongside our motor engineer’s workshop.
The branded Servicesure Autocentre, located next door but one to the original garage, opened its doors for the first time just over 2 years ago.
It caters to the needs of the modern motorist, a consumer trend that Tony had initially been turning away.
Tony puts part of TSG’s success down to the relationship he has with his local factor, Allparts Automotive, a founder member of The Parts Alliance.
He told us that Allparts supports his marketing strategy with seasonal offers. “It sounds a bit corny but we ‘spring into summer and fall into winter’, the Servicesure brand allows us to be more flexible with this.” “But you can’t just put the sign up and expect it to work. “You have to believe in it, you have to get behind the brand and promote it everywhere you can.”
With the newly opened Servicesure workshop successfully attracting fast fit custom, the motor engineer’s workshop deals with the more complicated jobs. Hybrid vehicles, for example, is an area that’s becoming
increasingly lucrative for TSG.
Tony had trained for this specialism just as the technology was starting to be seen as a viable alternative to the conventional petrol or diesel engine and has since sent more of his staff on the appropriate courses. It’s training that appears to have paid off. He said that more and more hybrid owners are specifically seeking out his garage for the specialist knowledge.
“We are quite well versed on them now and we find that one hybrid person will talk to another so word of mouth works well for us.”
While marketed completely separately, the two sides of the business are well adjusted and come together to cater for the needs of motorists in Slough and the surrounding area.
“We’ve been members of other networks before but we were pushing for a set up that would allow us to say ‘The answer is yes, what’s the question”. “It’s an opportunity to be part of a larger chain and it’s given us a lot of weight.”
We’re a small independent but Servicesure has allowed us to be part of something bigger, something that’s growing all the time as more and more quality members join.
WHAT IS SERVICESURE?
Established by The Parts Alliance in 2004, members of the Servicesure Autocentre network must comply
with a ‘consumer service charter’, which demands high quality and professionalism.
In return, independents benefit from a national warranty programme, a courtesy car scheme, marketing,
waste management and insurance offers, among other things. There are currently over 420 independents listed as a Servicesure Autocentre.
