Land Rover Experience West Country Centre is global centre of the year 2013

Land Rover has announced the Land Rover Experience West Country Centre as its Global Centre of the Year 2013.

The Land Rover Experience West Country Centre based at Wessington Farm in Awilscombe was the first regional experience centre to be opened in the UK, back in 2002. The centre offers a range of activities including the very best in off-road driving instruction, corporate events, team building and high class conference and meeting facilities.

Land Rover Experience West Country was awarded the prize in response to set criteria from Land Rover Global Operations. The small local Experience centre consistently delivers against the global business compliance tools, in order to best represent the iconic Land Rover brand. In addition, instructors show commitment and enthusiasm to ensure their product knowledge is current with the ever-evolving product advancements that Land Rover delivers. Customer care is at the forefront of the West Country operation, with the team ensuring their customer communication process is orderly but above all delivered by a genuine team of passionate experts.

One customer said of her recent visit to the Land Rover Experience West Country Centre:

“The driving was challenging, great fun and we learned a lot about the capabilities of the Evoque. Our instructor Dave’s calm, clear instruction gave us confidence. An exceptional instructor and a great day’s driving.”

Now in its second year, the Global Centre of the Year Award has been set up to highlight the efforts of the 40 Land Rover Experience centres operating across the globe and is an indication of the constantly rising standards of all centres. The Global Centre of the Year Award identifies each centre’s yearly progress in a number of different areas, including customer satisfaction, health and safety precautions and instructor performance, and recognises the business strategy the centre has in place to improve and grow.

Land Rover Global Network Manager John Lloyd said:

“Land Rover Experience West Country Centre really entered in to the spirit of the competition, demonstrating on a global scale their commitment to Land Rover and the team’s pro-active nature when representing the brand and everything it stands for.”

A dairy farmer by trade, owner and Managing Director of Land Rover Experience West Country Centre Andy Summers started trading as ‘East Devon 4X4’ before being approached by Land Rover 12 years ago when they were looking to regionalise Land Rover Experience. The business has continued to grow and develop, giving Andy the opportunity to travel around the world assisting on different types of Land Rover events.

Andy explains:

“We are incredibly proud of our our team who have been recognised for all their hard work. Like every Land Rover Experience Centre, we are keen to represent the brand in the right way and to nurture it as a business. My team display an enthusiasm and knowledge of the brand which shines through and I couldn’t have done any of this without them.”

“I’ve been challenged in ways I would have never imagined, from being a support driver on the first G4 challenge to my most recent and daring adventure as a Team Leader in Morocco. These opportunities remind me why we started this journey and opened the centre”

As part of the prize, Andy and his wife Ros have been awarded two places on the Land Rover Nordic Experience in February 2014. The Nordic Experience is a three day, two night programme which is open to the public and designed for those looking for a unique and fulfilling holiday in some of the most beautiful winter landscapes. It combines the adrenaline of off-road driving with the warmth and culture of the Finnish people, resulting in a truly one-off driving experience.