Liverpool-based Solo Cars has been recognised with four major regional and national awards following a landmark year for the independent dealership.
The awards, presented by some of the automotive and business industry’s most respected organisations, follow a landmark year that saw Solo Cars recognised for community impact, customer experience, record business growth and innovation.
Leading the accolades was the title of Independent Community Dealer of the Year 2026 at the national Motor Trader Independent Dealer Awards, one of the UK’s most respected awards for independent dealerships.
Presented at The Belfry, the award recognised Solo Cars for its deep-rooted commitment to the local community, with judges praising a business whose involvement extends far beyond sponsorship.
Director James McConville is a committee member and sponsor of West Kirby United, one of the UK’s largest grassroots football clubs with more than 1,000 registered players.
Solo Cars also donates £25 to every community charity event posted, hosts networking events from its showroom and was headline prize partner at Bongo’s Bingo’s 10th anniversary celebrations at Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena, giving away two cars live on stage in front of more than 11,000 people each night.
The national recognition followed another major success after Solo Cars was named Retailer of the Year at the 2025 Merseyside Independent Business Awards, beating finalists including 92 Degrees, Crosby Coffee and ThinK Wine.
Judges recognised what became the strongest year in the company’s history, with turnover increasing from £8.6 million to £11.6 million while the business simultaneously completed a £400,000 showroom transformation. Throughout the six-month redevelopment, the dealership remained open every day, with staff working from temporary shipping container offices to ensure customers experienced no disruption.
Solo Cars also continued to set the benchmark for customer experience after being named one of just six finalists in AutoTrader’s Customer Experience Award, placing the business among the top one per cent of more than 14,000 retailers across the UK.
The awards followed one of the industry’s largest undercover mystery shopping programmes, with the team assessed without warning whilst operating from its temporary showroom during the redevelopment.
Alongside the business’ success, founder James McConville was also Highly Commended in the Rising Star category at the National Influencer Awards after building one of the UK’s fastest-growing automotive social media audiences without agencies or advertising budgets.
Filming every piece of content himself using only a mobile phone, James has grown Solo Cars’ Instagram following from 27,000 to more than 50,000 in just one year, while TikTok has increased from 3,000 to more than 22,000 followers. At its peak, the dealership’s content reached more than 16 million people in a single month, with around half of all vehicle sales now beginning on social media.
James McConville, Founder of Solo Cars, said: “Receiving one award is always special, but to receive recognition across so many different areas of the business means even more because it reflects everything we’ve worked so hard to build.
“Whether it’s supporting our community, delivering the very best customer experience, investing back into the business or finding new ways to connect with customers, every award belongs to the incredible team we’ve built at Solo Cars.
“To be recognised by some of the industry’s most respected organisations whilst remaining proudly independent is something we’re hugely proud of. It gives us even more motivation to keep raising the bar and continuing to do things differently right here in Liverpool.”
