Bellissima! 20 years of Italian sports cars at Dorset business

Clive and Tim Bate, centre, with staff, clients and suppliers

One of the country’s leading companies dealing with top Italian Sports Cars has celebrated its 20^th anniversary with an open day at its Poole premises.

Emblem Sports Cars are the local experts for Ferrari, Maserati and Lamborghini – and owners bring them from around the country for the team to work on.

Clive Bate and son Tim set up the business in 2004 then brought in experts Myles Aldous and Martin Chatfield, followed by Darren Anderson, Rebecca Dismore and more recently Max Samways.

Together they developed an impressive reputation for expertise working on these complex vehicles.

Emblem’s open day

The business off Alder Road always has an eclectic mix of Italian motor cars being worked on – all benefiting from the attention to detail that has become synonymous with the Emblem brand.

To celebrate the 20^th anniversary, clients and suppliers were invited to an open day party with music, food and drinks.

Emblem’s open day

Tim Bate said: “We really wanted to give something back and thank our loyal clients, some of whom have been with us since we opened.

“We had a band called The Royal T’s playing and there was balloon animals and face painting for the children – although plenty of adults had car brand logos painted on their cheeks.

“A bit of rain couldn’t dampen the enthusiasm everyone has for their cars. Clients love them and know we always treat them as if they are our own.

“Many of our clients live abroad – we have a number in Hong Kong – and others are on the Channel Islands, so it was great to see them.

“We have people bring their cars to us from across the country – recently we’ve had cars from mid-Wales and Norfolk.

“Some of the cars we work on date from the 1960s such as the Ferrari 250GTE and others are more modern, like a Maserati Granturismo, but we have the knowledge and skills to ensure we can give them all the best attention.

“We now have a staff of six which includes an apprentice; we understand that our skills are in danger of dying out if we don’t train up a new generation.

“The business began because we love these cars and that love has never left us. Our customers appreciate that and it’s why we have such loyal clients.

“Our aim is to carry on for the next 20 years, offering a fantastic service for these fantastic cars.”