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The following article was written by Martin Buckley for 'ES Wheels' Evening Standard 17th August 2001. |
| Specialist of the week
Robert Hughes If you are steeped in the world of Jaguars, Robert Hughes seems to have been around forever, but he is still only 36. He started early: he had barely obtained a driving licence when he began selling the cars in the early Eighties. He was a prototype "get on your bike" Thatcher child. Having been made redundant from his first job, Hughes built up a mail-order business, selling old Jaguar literature then cashed it in to start retailing the real thing. By 1985 - when he was only 21 - a Hughes-prepared MkII had already won a Jaguar Drivers Club concours and in the ensuing years his fame spread among the car magazines as a purveyor of top-notch, low mileage, fully historied Jaguars to the cognoscenti. Many of his cars are used for film work - almost all the cars in The Krays were supplied by Hughes. These days, splitting his time between South Kensington and a discreet showroom - a converted wine warehouse - in the heart of the Surrey stockbroker belt, he finds he doesn't have to cut such a high-profile figure. "I sell a lot of my cars over the phone on a description, locally and all over the world. Before Hong Kong went back to China I was supplying Jaguars to ex-pats over the phone on a weekly basis" He eschews the Arthur Dailey image Jags once had - sheepskin coats, sovereign rings and slim pantellas - for a well-scrubbed professionalism that allowed him to enjoy the boom years and ride out the leaner times on his good reputation. Lots of other specialists were not quite so fortunate. His stock isn't just classics these days but spans the era from the MkII to a good spread of three- or four-year-old current shape X300 saloons for around the £15,000 mark. At the other end of the scale he supplies a lot of older Series 3 XJ's from five grand upwards to retired people who don't want to get caught with a lemon, or buyers who are coming out of company car schemes and fancy driving something older with a little more gravitas. "I sell a lot of cars to media people and celebrities," he says, being careful not to reveal any names. "I even sold a car to the Mongolian Embassy and another to a Tribal Chief from Zimbabwe." The older cars are still his passion - a 9,000 - mile from new MkII takes pride of place in the showroom - but Hughes has found himself a profitable niche with the newer cars. "I have professional central London clients who could afford a new Jaguar but would rather buy a three-year-old for £15,000, put a private plate on it and not worry about it when they leave it in the street in Mayfair or Knightsbridge.
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The Following article was written by the Daimler and Lancaster owner's club for 'The Driving Member' magazine July 2000. We are grateful for their kind permission to reproduce it. |
| Member Profile - Robert Hughes by Richard Whittington It's a minefield out there!! Over the past four or five years there has been a proliferation of 'classic car' dealers emerging. Open any of the dedicated publications and there are literally hundreds of dealers offering thousands of cars for sale. Having owned classic cars for over twenty years I have had more than my fair share of wasted journeys, travelling sometimes hundreds of miles to view a vehicle described as in excellent condition only to find that the vendor (whether dealer or private) was obviously wearing the proverbial "rose coloured spectacles" when describing the vehicle. Most of us, when we are in the market to buy, already have an idea which make of vehicle, if not model, we want to purchase. It makes sense therefore to find a marque specialist, usually an enthusiast too who has quite often developed a successful business from an interest in or passion for a particular manufacturer's product. One such man is Robert Hughes. I first met Robert at the N.E.C. in November. My Majestic Major was on the DLOC stand and I wanted to sell it. I knew of Robert from his adverts and from his book that I had purchased from the club stand at Stoneleigh. On meeting him I instantly realised that his knowledge of Daimlers was tremendous - he actually knew more about my MM than I did!! A couple of weeks later we were able to complete a deal and I am now the proud owner of a Sovereign 420. When the club decided to run a feature on Robert, our editor, knowing that I had dealt with him asked me to oblige. After some research I have prepared this potted history. 1979. Following a childhood passion for motor cars Robert formed his first car related business a mail order concern providing obsolete car marketing literature to owners' clubs and collectors. One of his largest clients retained him to source material for what was reputed to be the largest collection on Daimler/Jaguar in the World. 1983. Sold mail order business to finance his move into the world of "real cars" specialising in Daimler/Jaguar. 1985. JDC concours award for a Robert Hughes prepared Jaguar 3.8 Mk 2. 1986. As an aside, Robert expanded into supplying Daimlers and Jaguars for the film and TV industry (he still does as a sideline). Also in the early days worked as a film extra (usually the chauffeur!). 1987. First independent editorial in Classic and Sports car featuring a Daimler 66 series 1 VDP. Subsequently articles have appeared in "Classic Car" magazine, "The Times", "The Telegraph", books, TV and radio. 1991. Moved on from just supplying "weekend Classics" to satisfying the increasing demand from businessmen for series 1/2/3 XJ6s as company cars. He was featured as the dealer to buy the ultimate classic company car from in "The Saturday Telegraph". 1993. Robert was the first Classic Car dealer to be awarded the "Top Gear" dealer of the year award at the NEC presented by Quentin Willson. 1995. He was approached by Cassell to write a book on Daimler/Jaguar, one of the few I think to feature Daimler equally with Jaguar. 1998. Robert Hughes expanded into Ireland and sold 35 cars over there in his first year of trading. Robert still owns a 1978 Sovereign 4.2 that he purchased when he was 18. The engine from this car is the only one to have been rebuilt in its original form, for a customer, by Radford since the closure of their service department. He once owned (with 6 friends) a 1968 Majestic Major Hearse which was used for trips to London and the Coast. In my dealings with Robert I have found him to be enthusiastic, knowledgeable, most helpful and a man of his word (quite a rarity these days). He is obviously very selective when choosing his retail vehicles and the level of preparation is very high, if he does not have the vehicle in stock that you require he is more than willing to try to locate one for you. Knowing however that you cannot please all of the people all of the time I would suggest that talking to a specialist is a good starting point, even if they cannot satisfy your requirements they can at least point you in the right direction. Robert Hughes is based in Weybridge, Surrey. He can be contacted on 01932 858381 (office) 0836 237047 (mobile) 01932 857648 (fax). His Irish branch is in Co. Kildare, Republic of Ireland. Tel 01 670 3168. Further information - enquiries@roberthughes.co.uk |