As a family-run business in our 4th generation, 90 years of business is something we are incredibly proud of. The values that our founder Thomas ‘Cuth’ Harrison instilled into the heart of the Company still ring true today. This is thanks to the continued commitment from the Harrison family, now in the 4th generation of established management, the dedication from our teams in the dealerships and Group businesses, and the loyalty of our customers.
T.C. Harrison was founded in Sheffield in 1931 by Thomas ‘Cuth’ Harrison and just 5 years later in 1936 we were granted our first Ford Franchise. After the country rebounded from the second world war, it was in 1947 that Cuth Harrison formed a dealer relationship with JCB Limited, and we were one of the very first businesses in the world to do so. This relationship was forged with the aim of developing a new focus on the construction industry to supplement the existing Ford dealerships. Right up to the current day, these two partnerships continue to be the core foundation of the company we are today, along with one of the nation’s finest Contract Hire and fleet management companies, TCH Leasing. TC Harrison Group Ltd is extremely proud of its long and ongoing relationship with both Ford Motor Company and JCB Limited.
Ever present throughout our 90 years in business has been our highly respected reputation for delivering first class customer service all of which is reflected in the Company strapline ‘There’s no comparison with T.C. Harrison’.
Cuth Harrison passed on his 50-year legacy to his two sons Edward and John, who later welcomed their sons James, Jonathan and William, Cuth’s grandsons, into the business. As the family continued to grow and develop, it was in 1997 that our flagship Ford Store at Derby’s Pride Park was built. The move started the dawn of an exciting new era for the business as state-of-the-art headquarters for JCB and TCH Leasing were built in Chapeltown, Sheffield less than 10 years later.
When asked what the secret behind such continued family success is, the answer is simple. Cuth taught his sons that T.C. Harrison was renowned for treating our customers like friends and family. This is a lesson that shaped our business to what it is today, and an ethos that we still follow true to the word.
Now, as the world teeters on the threshold of a new age following the Global Pandemic, we look forward to what the next 90 years will bring for those connected to T.C. Harrison. For the Ford division, it is clear that the future of electric vehicles is very much our focus as Ford Motor Company has made a pledge to an all-electric future by 2030. The all-new fully electric Mustang Mach-E has showcased on tour at our FordStores how Ford will power the future. As an established Ford dealer, we can see first-hand the impact these exciting, electrified vehicles are already beginning to have on the car market.
This gives us pause for thought to ponder just what Cuth would have made of these rapid changes within the industry? For a man who entered the very first Grand Prix, something only elite drivers could take part in, it makes you wonder just what he would have thought of an all-electric future for motor cars and the acceleration of the now globally followed Formula One World Championships. Could he have ever imagined that T.C. Harrison’s would be flourishing 90 years on within the ever-changing sector we are in today? With the appreciation that self-driving cars will become much more prevalent on our roads further into the future, we wonder just how fathomable this would have been back in 1931 on the day Cuth opened his small repair shop.
We would like to take this moment to thank everyone connected with T.C. Harrison. From our dedicated staff that have not only built us to who we are today, but more recently worked tirelessly to keep us going through these tough times. And to our customers, without you we would not be here celebrating our 90th anniversary. So, from the bottom of our hearts, we all ‘thank you’.