Cardiff Man Drives Launch of a Classic New Venture

9 Nov 2011

Classic car enthusiast David Phelps with Venture Wales' Senior Business Adviser, David Bolton

Cardiff Man Drives Launch of a Classic New Venture

A Cardiff man has finally put a lifetime’s dream into gear after taking over his former employer’s garage business.

Not only is David Phelps, 43, now running his own accident repair business at the revamped premises but the enterprise is allowing him to pursue his personal passion for restoring classic cars.

David from Llandaff, found himself and four colleagues at a cross roads when his former employer, Ellermans garage in Ely, decided to close its garage in December 2010.

Since then, David has successfully relaunched the garage as David Phelps Accident Repair Centre and employed six staff including four former colleagues.

Having started the business as a mainstream accident repair business, David has now expanded the enterprise to include the restoration of vintage and classic cars, giving himself a valuable niche in the market.

Now that he is up and running, he has no doubt that the skills he acquired over the last 24 years and the help and advice of Venture Wales, the largest business support organisation in Wales, has allowed him to get into the fast lane with his new enterprise.

He said: "I've had an interest in classic cars since I was a child and, during my career, it was always something I thought could be turned into a business, as there isn'y anything like it in Cardiff, but as I was working full time this was little more than a dream. Until the opportunity to take over Ellermans garage presented itself.

“The Job Centre put me in touch with Venture Wales and I made an appointment with senior adviser Dave Bolton who took me through everything I needed to consider when starting a business.”

The accident repair centre now employs seven members of staff and is a Saab approved body shop and Vauxhall specialist. The business is on target for a £500,000 turnover in its first year. There are also plans to take on another two members of staff by the end of the year and grow the classic and vintage car restoration department.

David added: “I’m extremely grateful for all the help and support I received from Venture Wales, as it was absolutely crucial to the creation and success of my business, from developing my financial and marketing strategy, help with organising my website to on-going support and site visits. As someone new to owning a company, I was breaking a lot of ground I’d never covered before and it was a huge help to have someone with that level of experience to reassure me I was doing okay.”

Dave Bolton of Venture Wales, said: “It is always great when we hear our client’s success stories, especially when there is so much unemployment reported in the news. The fact that David had the foresight to consider the closing of his former garage as a business opportunity is brilliant and saved him and his colleagues from redundancy.

“David had the drive and commitment but needed the support when it came to the business and financial aspects. These skills can be taught and should not be a barrier to those who wish to start up on their own.”