Crossword Genius

Leaves a supplier of spares (5,7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

parts company

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'leaves' is the definition.

'a supplier of spares' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'a' could be 'an' and 'an' is present in the answer.
'of' could be 'o' and 'o' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for parts company that I've seen before include "Splits up" , "Member of a group goes their own way" , "firm producing vehicle components?" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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