Local motor dealer John Grose is celebrating having recently received the prestigious Chairman's Award from Ford Motor Company for 2010 for customer satisfaction.

This award is given only to the top 5pc of dealers in the UK.

John Grose is especially proud of the fact that it has won this award a record-breaking 12 times – more than any other dealer group in England.

Alister Leith, group managing director, said: 'The Chairman's Award is an independent measure of how well we look after our customers and is a tribute to the dedication of our wonderful staff.'

This award comes in the year Ford of Britain celebrates 100 years of vehicle manufacturing and distribution in the UK.

Grose Holdings was established in 1888 by Joseph Grose. Before motor cars it was a cycle agency in Northampton. In 1892 Grose invented and patented a new adjustable chain and chain wheel cover and lubricator for bicycles, having identified a problem with women getting their long skirts tangled up in the driving chain. This was a highly-successful move and became the focus of the business.

In 1897 Grose become the sole agent for the district for the Coventry Motor Company, selling some of the first 'horseless carriages' to the wealthy public, particularly doctors who found it helped respond to urgent calls.

Meanwhile in 1903 in America, Henry Ford had founded the Ford Motor Company and within months, had exported the first Ford cars to England. By 1911, Henry had decided to start building cars in Britain.

At the same time the Grose empire was going from strength to strength building its own coachworks for vehicle chassis by many different manufacturers including Ford.

In 1980, Grose Holdings was split in two, with founder Joseph's son Bill taking control of the Northampton portion and Bedford and Vauxhall franchises, and his other son, John, establishing John Grose Group in Ipswich, placing its full weight behind Ford Motor Company. Since then the strong relationship between Ford Motor Company and John Grose has remained – it now also has Ford franchises at Lowestoft, Diss, Framlingham and Woodbridge.

John Grose has just built a new showroom on the existing site in Whapload Road, Lowestoft.

Visit John Grose locally in Whapload Road, Lowestoft, or Park Road, Diss, telephone 01502 565353, e-mail ford@johngrose.co.uk or log on to the website at www.johngrose.co.uk.