The West Midlands office of Select Car Leasing is celebrating 10 years in business – with its success underpinned by a friendship going back more than three decades.

 The regional hub of the national vehicle lease firm is led by Principals Steven Gates and Stephen Hunt and offers a full vehicle lease service, from individual cars and vans to larger business fleets.

They joined forces to become a leasing broker back on 31st October 2016 and have since grown from a two-man operation to a dedicated team of 14 staff members today.

But Steven and Stephen’s friendship dates back much further than that, having first met 30 years ago when they crossed paths at a different leasing firm.

Through industry challenges, the duo say they’ve always found solutions with a level-headed and joined-up approach.

And by focusing on looking after their workforce, they’ve seen the team thrive; they’ll lease around 2,000 cars and vans to customers this year alone.

October also marks five years since they joined Select Car Leasing as an Appointed Representative, having previously traded as Leasehub.

Steven says: “A business is built on its staff and our team does such an excellent job. It’s about making them feel comfortable and appreciated and, for me, there’s nothing better than that. It’s a great feeling to have such a strong group.”

Stephen adds: “We don’t micro-manage the team. Instead, we support our staff and allow them to thrive while rewarding them properly. There’s a great atmosphere within the group and I think it shows in the way we do business.”

How it all began

Rewind to the mid-1990s and Steven and Stephen met in slightly odd circumstances.

Stephen was leaving his role at a different leasing company, and he ended up training his successor – Steven – before his departure. They stayed in touch and the rest is history.

Different roles followed until, 14 years ago, they ended up working together at Cheshire-based dealership group Clare James Automotive, providing fleet sales for VW, Audi, BMW, SEAT, and Skoda.

However, three years down the line when Sytner bought the business, redundancy followed. It was at that point the pair said, ‘Let’s start a business together’.

Steven says: “Before we got made redundant, a lot of our customers were small brokerages. We just thought, ‘If they can make a go of it as a business, then so can we’.

“At the very beginning, Stephen and I sat down and said to each other, ‘We are going to have disagreements but, ultimately, we need to walk through each tricky situation we encounter and come to the right decision together for both us and the business. It’s a mantra that has always served us well.”

Stephen adds: “We both get stressed at different things but we always bring each other back in the room. It’s a relationship that just works.”

Select Car Leasing West Midlands – beginning as Leasehub

Steven and Stephen began trading as Leasehub at the end of October 2016.

Steven laughs: “I was based in my mum’s kitchen, as I’d just moved back from being up north, and Stephen was in his own kitchen. We then rented a little room above an old Bentley service centre, with invoices Sellotaped to the window to keep the sun out!”

A move to dedicated office space in Romsley, Worcestershire, followed in 2017 as the team began to grow. Their very first leasing consultant, Lee Griffiths, is still with them to this day. In fact, in the time they’ve been trading, only one staff member has ever chosen to leave them.

Joining Select Car Leasing

On October 1st 2021, the West Midlands team became an Appointed Representative (AR) of Select Car Leasing – a move they describe as ‘extremely exciting’.

Stephen reveals: “Coming out of the difficulties of Covid-19, we knew we needed additional support and joining Select Car Leasing was a massive opportunity for us.

“Select’s standing in the marketplace and its powerful branding instantly gives you credibility and our business has gone from strength-to-strength since joining as a regional office.

“Yes, we have an amazing team of people who have put in a hell of a lot of work. But we’re also working behind a brand that supports, nurtures and coaches us while standing above all other brokers in the industry.”

https://www.selectcarleasing.co.uk/car-leasing-team-midlands