REPRESENTATIVES from several different companies are eyeing up the Cazoo vehicle preparation site at Westbury.
An employee, who does not wish to be named, has told the Wiltshire Times there has been some interest in the Northacre Industrial Estate centre from prospective buyers.
It is one of four vehicle preparation centres reported to be earmarked for closure, alongside 15 customer service centres.
“They have had visitors to the site representing specific companies but there are no concrete bids, it is just interest," the source said.
The 150-plus staff employed at the centre will begin to receive notification of their redundancy packages from Wednesday onwards.
“We are awaiting packages to be emailed out what is being offered to various people. The only update we have is that it is going to happen from Wednesday onwards.”
Cazoo has been approached for a comment.
The firm announced on January 18 it was consulting with around 3,000 staff nationwide over proposals to close some of its vehicle preparation and customer service centres.
On the same day, Cazoo’s chief executive officer Alex Chesterman stood down and the firm told staff in team meetings that mass redundancies were likely.
The move comes as Cazoo slashed its sales forecasts for 2023 from about 65,000 used cars sold in 2022 to just 40,000 this year and its share price plummeted on the London Stock Exchange.
Mr Chesterman, who had founded Cazoo in 2018, said that despite having sold more than 100,000 cars since launching three years ago they were "extremely mindful of the current economic environment".
Around 15 of Cazoo's UK customer service centres are facing closure and four of the company’s vehicle preparation centres, including Westbury.
A Cazoo spokesperson said: "We are currently in consultation with our employees over a number of site closures in the coming months.
"The specific sites and number of employees affected will be determined at the end of this process."
Some of the 150-plus employs with less than two years’ service have been told they may only get four weeks' redundancy pay.
The 45-day consultation period will expire on Saturday, March 4 at which point the site is likely to close. The company says “no decisions” have yet been made.
Last week, Cazoo disclosed it is keeping only three of its vehicle preparation centres at Portbury in Bristol, Bedford and Cold Meece in Staffordshire.
The company is proposing to close four at Westbury, Long Bennington, Livingston and Gloucester.
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