Busseys History

The Beginnings Of Busseys

The birth of Busseys as we know it today, when the two brothers joined forces with the Sabberton Bros.
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True to its nickname, the 20s were a time of tumultuous cultural change – but along with the Jazz Age also came the age of the automobile.

• 1913
  Charles ‘Reg’ Bussey, the grand-father of the current chairman, first formed an association with Ford Motor Co. Ltd.
• 1918
  Alec Bussey, Reg’s brother, joins the company and together they buy out engineering firm Sabberton Brothers.
• 1920
  Alec Bussey and his older brother C.R Bussey bought out the company from Mr Payne, who was previously a co-owner at the original Palace Street site.
• 1922
  The birth of Busseys as we know it today, when the two brothers joined forces with G. Sabberton and E. Bray of Sabberton Bros – originally an Iron Foundry and General Engineering business and the limited company of Bussey & Sabberton Bros Ltd was formed. With this newfound partnership, Busseys and Sabberton expanded further by acquiring smaller properties surrounding Palace Street.
• 1923
  On January 16th, Ford Motor Company appointed Busseys and Sabberton Bros as official Ford Distributors.
• 1924-1934
  As the business continued to grow into the late 1920s and motor production increased, Busseys gained more commercial property across Quayside, Bedding Lane and Pigg Lane as part of the development of the Palace Street site.

A Time of Expansion

A new and radical move saw the construction of new workshops and a covered reception.
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The 1930s! The era where scientists split the atom, the Loch Ness Monster was first spotted and the Golden Gate Bridge was opened. It was the decade that brought a lot of change across the world and that didn’t stop at Busseys. During this period there was great expansion of the Palace Street workshop owned by Bussey & Sabberton Bros.

Key years:

• 1924-1934
  A time of great expansion which saw the development of the Palace Street site including the construction of new workshops and, radically, a covered reception area for customers. The company sold, serviced and repaired all manner of vehicles including cars, trucks and tractors.
• 1939-1945
  Appointed a Ministry of Supply Workshop entrusted with the repair and overhaul of countless army vehicles throughout the war.

The War Years

Busseys became a Ministry of supply workshop during the War Years.
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Most notably the years of World War II, the 40s were a time of immense global change. The world’s earliest computer device was built, and the age of swing began to fade into the iconic rock n’ roll era. The Stores building on Bedding Lane was blitzed in May 1942, and later rebuilt due to war work. Throughout the 1940’s, Busseys and Sabberton continued to offer Tyresoles services, mostly for the remoulding of tyres on military vehicles.

Key years:

• 1939-1945
  Appointed a Ministry of Supply Workshop entrusted with the repair and overhaul of countless army vehicles throughout the war
• 1948
  Further development of Palace Street saw the building of a tyre re-treading and distribution factory under the brand name of ‘Tyresoles’.

Renovations and Revolutions

The 50s held promise for many and saw great expansion for Busseys.
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The 50s held promise for many & presented a stark contrast to the 40s. Advances in car technology saw seat belts introduced in 1952, Disneyland was opened to the public and Princess Elizabeth was crowned Queen at 25! The swinging 60’s held a lot of change as well, from its iconic fashion to good old sex, drugs and rock n’ roll.

The 50;s and 60’s were also revolutionary at Busseys. The company saw great expansion over at the Thorpe Road branch, a petrol station and service centre were added. This allowed Busseys to continue growing as a company, this growth would continue into the 60’s as a the ground floor showroom at Palace Street was fitted with a modernised service reception & office area.

This wouldn’t be the only significant change to the company, in 1965 Busseys and Sabberton opened the first workshop and showroom at their Whiffler Road site. The Whiffler Road branch went on to supercede Palace Street and is now home to present day Busseys head office and main Ford dealership.

Key years:

• 1958
  Constructed a service centre and petrol filling station on Thorpe Road, Norwich
• 1960-1964
  Further development at Palace Street adding a showroom and head office complex together with a commercial workshop
• 1965
  A new state of the art dealership was opened on Whiffler Road, Norwich including a dedicated commercial centre
• 1966-1979
  As the company continued to grow further developments were added to the Whiffler Road site.

Movement and Expansion

The Accident Repair Centre, previously in Palace Street, moved to a new facility on Whiffler Road.
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In the late 1970s, Busseys and Sabberton Bros took on a lease at Whiffler Road for a combined Body and Paint Workshop known as ‘Tower House’. The old paintshop at Quayside was later sold in 1980. Palace Street was also expanded by the company purchasing no.15 & 17 to officially own the entire block bounding Palace Street, Quayside, Pigg Lane and Bedding Lane.

In 1983 the company celebrated 60 years of business, a huge milestone!

Key years:

• 1979
  The Accident Repair Centre, previously in Palace Street, moved to a new facility also on Whiffler Road
• 1983
  Busseys celebrate 60 years of being a Ford dealer.

Branches across Norfolk

The 90’s saw a lot of change with a purpose built showroom at Whiffler Road and the acquisition of territory throughout Norfolk.
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The 90’s saw a lot of change around the world, with the use of the internet growing exponentially to the first Harry Potter book being released. It is safe to say the 90s were diverse! Busseys went through a lot of change during this time and was able to adapt with the forever changing automotive industry

Key years:

• 1991
  New purpose built showroom complex built at Whiffler Road site. This development allowed the head office at Palace Street to be moved over to Whiffler Road. To mark the occasion Busseys had an open day for the public to see the new and improved site.
• 1995-1996
  Busseys acquired Main Ford Dealership in the Fakenham area. In 1996 a new dealership was built in Fakenham. In the same year Busseys acquired South Norwich, Dereham and Swaffham Main Ford Dealership territory. This made Busseys the largest & longest established Main Ford Dealership in Norfolk!
• 1998
  Busseys celebrate 75 years as a Main Ford Dealer

Award Winning Excellence

Busseys continued to triumph into the 21st Century winning many European Chairman’s Award for Outstanding Customer Satisfaction.
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The 2000s were a time of drastic change – from the rise of the Internet to some rather questionable fashion trends!

Following the expansion of our branches in Norwich, Dereham, Swaffham and Fakenham throughout the 1990s, Busseys continued to triumph into the 21st Century.

Over the early 2000s, the original site at Palace Street was superseded by the more modernised Whiffler Road branch, where the Busseys Head Office remains to this day.

Key years:

• 2000
  Busseys win the European Chairman’s Award for Outstanding Customer Satisfaction
• 2005
  Busseys acquire the Attleborough Ford Retail Dealer territory
• 2007
  Busseys wins the European Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Customer Satisfaction
• 2009
  Busseys wins the European Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Customer Satisfaction

The Lion Joins The Family

Busseys become the main Peugeot dealer in Norwich with the acquisition of Hall Road.
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With the ever advancing technologies within the automotive industry, Busseys were continuing to grow to suite the changing climate. At the start of 2010 the lion joined the family with the acquisition of a Peugeot franchise at Hall Road

• 2010
  Busseys expanded even further with the acquisition of a Peugeot franchise at Hall Road. This also made Busseys the main Peugeot dealer in Norwich.
• 2013
  Busseys and Sabberton Bros celebrated their 90th anniversary as an original Ford Dealership.
• 2015
  Busseys Whiffler Road, Norwich branch becomes a FordStore
• 2016
  Following the success of Hall Road, a second Peugeot dealership was opened in March as an addition to the Dereham Ford branch

Electrification

The 2020's are shaping up to be the decade of the electric car.
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The 2020's are shaping up to be the decade the electric car goes mainstream! Both Ford and Peugeot released a range of hybrid and electric cars, including the Mustang Mach-e and the Peugeot e-2008. 2020 was also the year the coronavirus pandemic hit the UK, presenting some of the toughest trading conditions Busseys have ever faced. Although tough, Busseys continued to adapt and change to new rules and regulations and came out of the pandemic stronger than ever.

In 2022, the Ineos Grenadier joined the company , with a showroom being introduced at the Attleborough branch. Whilst Ford Sales moved into our Whiffler Road branch to make room for Ineos, the branch still offers the highest level of servicing.

In 2023 the company celebrate 100 years, a fantastic milestone that couldn’t have been possible without its hard-working employees and loyal customers. We were presented with a plaque to mark this achievement by Ford UK President, Lisa Brankin.