At the SIMI annual general meeting recently, Director General Alan Nolan, officially announced Mike Finlay as SIMI President for 2009.

 
Mike Finlay and his family have been involved in the motor trade since 1936 when Mike’s Grandfather, ‘The Captain’, began his business with a Renault, and later Fiat dealership in Monasterevan. Mike’s father later joined the business and in 1971 they took on the Fiat agency in Newbridge, later moving to Ford. Mike and his brother Gary, the third generation of the family, have built on these foundations and last year opened the second Finlay Ford Dealership at Naas.

Commenting on his new role Mike said, “My tenure as SIMI President comes at a particularly interesting and uncertain time for the motor industry. I firmly believe that although our industry is being forced to make drastic adjustments and while change can be unsettling, it can also provide opportunities…I believe that we all need to draw the line on the bad news and the negative outlook; there is cause to be positive and that, I hope, will be the key stone to my Presidency.”