Never Driven on a Sunday

Today, we have been putting the finishing touches to the editorial copy for next week’s Newbury Business News, and taking the last photographs too – which is how I ended up at Taylor’s of Newbury with used-car salesman extraordinaire. Duncan Taylor.

Duncan is an excellent example of that entrepreneurial spirit that keeps us business folk inspired. Just four years ago he was selling cars at a garage in Newbury – plenty of them mind!

However, then he launched Taylor’s of Newbury from a site on St. John’s Road in the town. Gradually he has been selling newer and newer used cars and then added commercial vehicles to his limited forecourt.

Then just before Christmas he secured a lease on a prime garage site on the A4 in Speen, just next door to the Shell garage and a location that has been a garage for almost a century.

Now he has a showroom and the cars are flying out of the big glass doors. Not a word of a lie, I had to wait this morning to take a photograph because of the steady flow of early morning customers – early Monday morning customers – buying cars! When they’d gone we had to replace the vehicles they’d bought with new ones for the photograph!

He also offers a fine line in hand car washes, the kind that refresh the part the automated washes gloss over.

Oh yes, today’s title? ‘Never Driven on a Sunday’ refers to a vicar’s car now in the showroom which counters the usual blurb about ‘Always Driven on Sunday’ Nice!