Crossgar brothers scoop eBay award

Crossgar brothers scoop eBay award

6 November 2019

CROSSGAR brothers Michael and Christopher Cleary have won the Family Business of the Year category at the UK-wide eBay for Business Awards 2019 for running their auto parts business.

The brothers are behind Genuine Parts UK (NI) and also received £1,000 in cash, an Anchor eBay store subion free for one year with Concierge access,.

In addition, they will benefit from a package of invaluable business support from eBay’s small business team. 

The business, which is run alongside Michael and Christopher’s day jobs, started off at packing the parts at their mother’s kitchen table.

It has evolved to an 8,000 sq ft commercial premises in Crossgar with a turnover more than £100,000 in just two years. 

The brothers has also recently taken on their first part-time employee — their sister, Ellen-Louise. 

The business was established during the brothers’ two-year trip travelling across Australia when they took a risk and bought a small job lot of automotive parts on eBay. 

The vision was to provide genuine auto parts efficiently and in a hassle-free manner to customers. 

Michael explained: “When Christopher and I returned from Australia, we had ambition and drive and really wanted to create our own business. As buyers, we had used eBay before, but selling on eBay was a whole new experience, and one which we found we loved.

“From the first job lot of automotive parts, there have been many challenges and learnings, but we’ve come a long away. We’re extremely proud to be named as eBay’s Family Business of the Year, and this award really is testament to hard work, commitment and long hours paying off.”

From this first leap of faith in 2017, Michael and Christopher built the business up to what it is today.

Christopher adds: “We used the small pot of money that we’d returned with from Australia to invest in the company’s growth and worked hard to make contacts within the automotive industry.

“Some months after we initially launched the business, we started to be contacted by car manufacturers with offers to buy their stock. This was the game-changer for us, and from that moment on, our company has grown significantly with our eBay orders being shipped internationally.”

Rob Hattrell, Vice President of eBay UK, said: “Michael and Christopher are an excellent example of the UK’s entrepreneurial spirit.

“It’s truly inspiring to see the brothers making the most of opportunities with eBay, growing what has become a global business from their family’s kitchen table in Crossgar.

“It’s a pleasure to celebrate their success and we’re excited to see what the future holds for Genuine Parts.”