Reg Vardy is bringing 100 jobs to the region with the announcement it is to build a £10m car supermarket next to the MetroCentre.

The 16.5-acre Gateshead site, which the group bought in 1999, will be transformed into one of the biggest used car retail operations in the North-East.

More than 1,000 cars will be displayed on the site between the shopping centre and the Federation Brewery.

Sir Peter Vardy, chief executive of Reg Vardy, said: "The MetroCentre is one of the busiest retail areas in the UK and presents a fantastic opportunity for us, which was why we bought the land when the opportunity came up. We feel that now is the perfect time to develop it.

"The motor retail market is booming and we are ideally placed to take advantage of that.

"With a used-car supermarket of this size we can offer customers enormous choice at a time when prices are at the lowest for years, our finance packages are leading the market and we have the infrastructure to offer complete customer satisfaction."

Planning permission to develop the land was granted in 2000. Development of the site will begin later this year.

In the past 12 months, Reg Vardy has invested £31m in 17 dealerships in Scotland, the West Midlands and the North-East, taking its total to 90 nationwide.