AN AWARD-WINNING used car dealership in the Borders has guaranteed its long-term future after expansion plans were rubber-stamped.

Greendale Car Sales was established by husband and wife Nick and Amy Mactaggart 16 years ago.

Business is booming and the couple now employ seven staff.

But with success has come the need to expand and moving to a new location outside the Borders was one consideration.

Now that possibility is no more after “what feels a lifetime” they acquired land next to, and including, the current forecourt at Galalaw Retail Park to enable expansion to go-ahead.

Nick described it as a “big day” for the company.

He said: “We’re going to be expanding the forecourt and then we have plans to build an onsite workshop. We do have a workshop in Hawick Trade Park, so the plan is once the new workshop is built we will move everybody up and everything will be on one site. That’s the idea.

“We have already got the planning permission in place and so now we can crack on and it’s exciting times.

“I’m hoping there will be new job implications and it will certainly guarantee security for us here and ensure that the business will stay in the Borders, that was the main thing.

“We’d looked at the option of moving out of the Borders because we needed the space. I didn’t want to move and so this has definitely cemented our future in the Borders for the long term.

“There is still a little time on the lease at the existing workshop but once that is up we’ll make the switch and in the long term additional jobs are likely.”

The Autotrader retailer of the year award winner has been recognised after receiving five-star reviews from customers for the standard of the service it provides.