Sales Director – Equipment Hire
Sales Director – Equipment Hire
Market-leading business | Significant growth plans | National role
This is an exceptional opportunity to join a well-established, market-leading equipment hire business at an exciting point in its development.
Part of a larger, highly successful group, the company combines substantial scale with a long-term approach to investment, people and customer service. It is a stable, profitable and well-capitalised business with significant turnover, a strong national presence and ambitious plans for further growth over the next few years.
The business is known for the quality and modernity of its fleet, high levels of customer service and strong relationships across the construction and infrastructure sectors. Continued investment in products, technology and infrastructure provides a strong platform for the next stage of expansion.
The Sales Director will lead the national commercial strategy and play a central role in delivering that growth.
The remit will include responsibility for regional sales, major accounts, bids and tenders, pricing strategy and the development of opportunities around major infrastructure projects. A key element of the role will be maintaining and developing senior-level relationships with major customers while creating a high-performing, commercially focused sales organisation.
We are looking for an experienced sales leader with a strong track record within equipment hire or a closely related sector. The successful individual will combine strategic thinking with strong commercial instincts and the credibility to operate with senior decision-makers at major customers.
They will also need to be a strong people leader: capable of developing existing teams, introducing new ideas and raising performance while working effectively within a successful and established culture.
This is not a heavily bureaucratic environment. The business is decisive and entrepreneurial, with considerable autonomy given to its senior leaders. The culture is supportive and pragmatic, with a genuine long-term approach to investment and development.
The opportunity offers:
- A senior role within a substantial, market-leading business
- Significant scope to influence future growth strategy
- A high-quality, modern and well-invested fleet
- Strong existing customer relationships and market position
- The backing and financial strength of a larger group
- Genuine autonomy and freedom to make an impact
- A positive, stable and people-focused culture
- Excellent long-term career potential
The role is national and geography is relatively flexible, although a central UK location would be advantageous. Regular travel throughout the UK will be required.
For a strictly confidential discussion, Please send your CV to CV@Wilsonbrook.com, or contact Matthew Lambert at Wilson Brook Consulting for a confidential discussion.
Initial discussions will be handled in the strictest confidence.
Head of Commercial (Sales Director Designate)
Head of Commercial (Sales Director Designate)
North West England | Privately Owned Manufacturing Business | Significant Growth Opportunity
Wilson Brook is delighted to be partnering exclusively with a highly successful, privately owned British manufacturer to appoint a Head of Commercial (Sales Director Designate).
Our client is an ambitious, well-invested and exceptionally profitable business operating within the specialist building products and construction materials sector. Having achieved impressive growth in recent years, the company has established an enviable reputation for product quality, technical innovation, outstanding customer service and strong relationships with its distribution partners.
With an established UK customer base, significant manufacturing capacity and ambitious plans for further expansion, the business is entering an exciting next phase of development.
This appointment represents an opportunity to join a successful, entrepreneurial organisation and play a pivotal role in shaping its future commercial strategy.
The Opportunity
Reporting directly to the Managing Director, the successful candidate will assume responsibility for the development and execution of the company's commercial strategy, leading an established national sales team and driving sustainable, profitable growth.
This is not a turnaround situation. The business has strong foundations, excellent products and an established market position. The opportunity is to build upon that success by introducing greater strategic direction, consistency and commercial discipline.
Key responsibilities will include:
- Developing and implementing a clear, commercially focused growth strategy.
- Leading, coaching and developing an established national field sales team.
- Strengthening sales management processes, forecasting and performance measurement.
- Identifying opportunities to increase market penetration, develop existing accounts and expand into appropriate new markets.
- Improving commercial analysis, pricing discipline and profitability across the customer base.
- Building strong relationships with key distributors, customers and internal stakeholders.
- Working closely with the Managing Director and wider leadership team to support the company's continued development.
The Individual
We are seeking an accomplished commercial leader with the ambition, capability and personality to make a significant contribution to an already successful business.
You will bring:
- A successful track record in senior sales or commercial leadership, ideally within a manufacturing-led, technical or specialist B2B environment.
- Experience of developing and implementing commercial strategies that deliver sustainable, profitable growth.
- Strong people leadership skills, with the ability to motivate, coach and develop an established sales team.
- Excellent commercial judgement, analytical capability and an understanding of pricing, margins and sales performance.
- A structured, organised and consistent approach, balanced with entrepreneurial thinking and commercial agility.
- The credibility and interpersonal skills to build relationships across all levels of a business.
Experience within building products, construction materials or specialist distribution would be advantageous, although we are equally interested in individuals from other sectors who can demonstrate relevant, transferable experience.
Why Consider This Opportunity?
This is an opportunity to join a financially strong, growing and independently owned British business with genuine long-term ambition.
The company combines the resources and investment capacity of an established manufacturer with the agility, accessibility and entrepreneurial culture of a privately owned organisation.
The successful individual will work closely with a highly engaged Managing Director, enjoy considerable autonomy and have the opportunity to influence the direction of the business.
Importantly, this appointment offers genuine potential to progress into a Sales Director position, subject to performance and the individual's contribution to the organisation.
The role is based at the company's North West headquarters, with regular travel to customers and the wider sales team. Candidates should ideally live within reasonable daily commuting distance for east of access to the HQ.
Interested?
This is a confidential appointment, and further information will be shared with suitably qualified individuals following an initial discussion.
For a confidential conversation, please contact Jonny Pegler at Wilson Brook.
Alternatively, please send your CV to cv@wilsonbrook.com, quoting Head of Commercial – North West.
All enquiries will be handled in the strictest confidence.
Operations Director
CONFIDENTIAL EXECUTIVE SEARCH
Operations Director
Substantial Privately Owned Services Group | South East England | Highly Competitive Executive Package
Wilson Brook has been retained by a highly successful, privately owned UK services group to identify an exceptional Operations Director.
Our client is a substantial, financially strong and ambitious organisation with an established customer base, significant recurring revenues and exciting plans for continued expansion.
The business has developed an enviable reputation for delivering high-quality services and is investing in its leadership structure to support the next phase of growth.
We are seeking a commercially astute, hands-on operational leader capable of taking ownership of complex service operations and delivering exceptional performance.
The Opportunity
Working closely with the senior leadership team, the successful candidate will take responsibility for operational performance across a substantial portfolio of activities.
The role will encompass operational leadership, service delivery, resource management, financial performance, customer satisfaction and the development of high-performing teams.
This is a particularly attractive opportunity for someone who enjoys making a tangible difference, has an exceptional understanding of operational detail and thrives in a fast-moving, commercially focused environment.
The Ideal Candidate
We are interested in speaking with established Operations Directors and senior operational leaders who can demonstrate:
- Successful leadership of large, geographically dispersed operational teams.
- Experience managing complex, high-volume service delivery environments.
- Exceptional understanding of operational KPIs, productivity and efficiency.
- Strong commercial and financial acumen, including cost control and profitability.
- A proven track record of improving operational performance.
- Decisive, hands-on leadership and the ability to resolve challenges quickly.
Potential backgrounds include technical services, field engineering, utilities, infrastructure, telecommunications, facilities management, logistics and other operationally intensive service businesses.
The successful individual will combine strategic understanding with exceptional operational capability and a genuine willingness to engage with the detail.
Our client offers an entrepreneurial, highly accountable culture, substantial autonomy and the opportunity to contribute directly to the continued growth and success of the organisation.
Location and Working Arrangements
Whilst the business operates throughout the UK, its head office is based in the South East of England, and regular attendance will be required. Candidates from across the UK will be considered, provided they are comfortable with the necessary travel and commitment to maintaining a strong presence at head office.
Remuneration: Highly competitive executive salary, performance-related incentives and additional benefits, commensurate with experience.
An outstanding opportunity for a proven operational leader seeking greater autonomy, responsibility and the chance to deliver meaningful change.
For a strictly confidential discussion, Please send your CV to CV@Wilsonbrook.com, or contact Matthew Lambert at Wilson Brook Consulting for a confidential discussion.
The identity of our client and further details of the opportunity will be disclosed at an appropriate stage of the process, subject to confidentiality arrangements.
Divisional Managing Director
CONFIDENTIAL EXECUTIVE SEARCH
Divisional Managing Director
Substantial Privately Owned Services Group | South East England | Highly Competitive Executive Package
Wilson Brook has been retained by a highly successful, privately owned UK services group to appoint a Divisional Managing Director as part of an ambitious programme of investment and expansion.
Our client is a substantial, profitable and well-established business with an excellent reputation, a strong portfolio of long-term customer relationships and significant opportunities for further growth.
With ambitious plans to expand considerably over the next five years, the business is strengthening its senior leadership team and seeking an exceptional individual to take full responsibility for a major operating division.
The Opportunity
Reporting into the group's senior leadership, the successful candidate will assume complete ownership of divisional performance, encompassing operational delivery, commercial development, customer relationships, people leadership and profitability.
This is a genuine business leadership opportunity, offering considerable autonomy, influence and the ability to shape and grow a substantial division.
The Ideal Candidate
We are particularly interested in speaking with accomplished Managing Directors, Divisional Directors, General Managers and commercially astute Operations Directors who can demonstrate:
- Full P&L accountability and a track record of profitable growth.
- Leadership of complex, geographically dispersed service operations.
- Exceptional commercial, financial and operational understanding.
- Experience managing substantial customer contracts and relationships.
- An entrepreneurial mindset, strong decision-making and personal accountability.
- The ability to combine strategic leadership with hands-on operational involvement.
Relevant experience could come from a wide range of business services, technical services, engineering, infrastructure, facilities management or other operationally intensive sectors.
Our client operates with pace, agility and an entrepreneurial culture, offering significant freedom and responsibility to individuals who thrive in high-performance environments.
Location and Working Arrangements
Whilst the business operates throughout the UK, its head office is based in the South East of England, and regular attendance will be required. Candidates from across the UK will be considered, provided they are comfortable with the necessary travel and commitment to maintaining a strong presence at head office.
Remuneration: Highly competitive executive salary, substantial performance-related bonus and additional benefits.
An exceptional opportunity for an ambitious business leader to make a substantial impact within a growing and highly successful organisation.
For a strictly confidential discussion, Please send your CV to CV@Wilsonbrook.com, or contact Matthew Lambert at Wilson Brook Consulting for a confidential discussion.
The identity of our client and further details of the opportunity will be disclosed at an appropriate stage of the process, subject to confidentiality arrangements.
Head of Commercial
Head of Commercial
Flexible UK location: West Midlands or South East preferred; regular travel to key sites in these locations
Can you turn commercial insight into stronger margins and bring people with you?
Wilson Brook is partnering with a substantial, private equity-backed manufacturing and distribution group to recruit a Head of Commercial. The business supplies a broad portfolio of products, from commodity lines to differentiated, value-added solutions, with customer service, processing and delivery playing an important part in its proposition.
This newly created, senior-level opportunity will establish a more coherent commercial approach and help unlock significant untapped profit potential. Early pricing initiatives have already demonstrated a material financial benefit. The group now wants an experienced leader to accelerate progress, build the right infrastructure and create lasting commercial discipline.
The opportunity
Pricing and margin improvement will be the immediate priority. Today, similar pricing can sometimes be applied to very different customer propositions: a full-load delivery and a small, urgent depot order may carry substantially different costs and value. You will develop a more considered pricing approach that recognises product differentiation, customer segments, order size, service levels and cost-to-serve, while remaining commercially competitive.
You will translate existing commercial data and market intelligence into clear pricing recommendations, then establish practical frameworks, system-based controls and appropriate flexibility. The business has useful data, capable systems, an experienced IT team and FP&A support; the challenge is to bring those resources together into tools and processes that sales colleagues use consistently.
You will also strengthen discount and rebate governance, moving from largely relationship-based arrangements towards structured incentives with clear performance expectations, review and follow-through. Contract and bid pricing, customer terms and the management of longer-term pricing risk will form part of the broader remit.
Working closely with Sales Directors and their teams, you will provide the analysis and recommendations that inform pricing and margin decisions. Sales retains direct accountability for margin performance; your success will depend on giving colleagues confidence in the evidence, winning support and ensuring practical adoption. You will also contribute to commercial forecasting and budgeting and help convert good ideas into deliverable plans.
Initially focused on a major distribution operation, the role has scope to expand into the group’s manufacturing activities and eventually develop stronger links between customer demand, product management, procurement and profitability. You will recruit and develop dedicated pricing/analytical support, while working closely with Finance, IT, Marketing and other functions.
About you
You may currently be a Head of Commercial, Head of Pricing, Pricing Director, Commercial Excellence leader or a senior pricing/commercial manager ready for a broader remit. What matters most is evidence that you have personally improved pricing practice in a complex business and persuaded commercial teams to adopt the changes.
Your experience will include:
- Designing and implementing pricing strategies, controls or commercial frameworks that demonstrably improved margins or profitability.
- Understanding B2B manufacturing or distribution economics, including customer segmentation, service cost, commodity products and differentiated value propositions.
- Building trust with experienced sales leaders and teams, constructively challenging assumptions and overcoming resistance to change.
- Personally analysing pricing and customer data, testing hypotheses and turning findings into compelling, implementable proposals; strong Excel and analytical fluency are important.
- Improving customer rebates, discounts, contracts or bid pricing, and contributing meaningfully to forecasting, budgeting and commercial planning.
- Implementing change across functions, developing colleagues and establishing processes that remain effective after the initial project.
We are open-minded about sector background: specific product knowledge would be useful but is not essential. Comparable experience in building products, industrial distribution, technical products, packaging or other B2B environments is highly relevant. We will value achievements and the ability to influence more highly than job title or product knowledge alone.
You will be commercially curious, numerically strong, pragmatic and resilient. This is a visible, people-facing appointment: you must be equally comfortable working through detailed analysis and explaining a sensitive pricing recommendation to experienced sales colleagues. The right person will bring pace and conviction without imposing change for its own sake.
Location and application
Location is flexible, with the Midlands and the South East particularly practical for access to key sites. Regular visits to other operations and some overnight travel will be expected, alongside homeworking where appropriate.
Please send your CV to CV@Wilsonbrook.com, or contact Imogen Pearsonat Wilson Brook Consulting for a confidential discussion.
This is a confidential search. Further information about the group, the role and its wider growth opportunity will be shared with suitable candidates as discussions progress.
General Manager – Specialist B2B Distribution
General Manager – Specialist B2B Distribution
Hertfordshire | Highly Autonomous SME | Significant Profit-Related Earnings
We are conducting a confidential search for a General Manager to lead a highly profitable, specialist B2B distribution business based in Hertfordshire.
The company operates as an autonomous SME within a much larger privately owned international group. It is an established, successful business with a strong reputation, experienced team, loyal customer base and attractive margins.
This is not a turnaround.
The opportunity is to take responsibility for a well-run business, protect what already works and then shape its next phase of profitable growth.
The operating model is deliberately decentralised. The General Manager will have genuine ownership of the business and considerable freedom to decide how best to develop it. You will be accountable for the result rather than simply implementing instructions from head office.
In practical terms, you will have responsibility for:
- Full P&L and working-capital performance
- Sales, margin and profitable growth
- Customer and supplier relationships
- Buying, pricing and commercial decision-making
- Product, market and customer strategy
- Stock and operational performance
- Leadership and development of the team
- New-business development and pipeline
- Identifying adjacent products and markets
- Investment proposals to support future growth
- Shaping how the business should evolve over the longer term
The business predominantly supplies specialist products into industrial and other B2B markets on a national basis. It has a deliberately focused product range rather than trying to be everything to everybody, and its success has historically been built around service, availability, specialist knowledge and close customer relationships rather than simply competing on price.
There is considerable freedom to identify where future growth should come from. That could involve developing existing customers, finding new customers, broadening the product proposition, entering adjacent markets, strengthening supplier partnerships or developing new routes to market.
The business also trades internally with other companies within the wider group, creating an additional opportunity to develop internal supply relationships alongside the external customer base.
Investment is available where there is a strong commercial case. The successful General Manager will therefore be encouraged to think entrepreneurially about the future structure, capacity and growth of the business rather than simply managing today's operation.
The opportunity:
This is essentially an opportunity to run a business as if it were your own, but with the financial strength, supplier network and resources of a much larger group behind you.
The wider organisation operates a decentralised profit-centre model. Local leaders are trusted to make commercial decisions, move quickly and take responsibility for results. There is limited bureaucracy and considerable scope for a strong General Manager to influence what the business becomes.
The initial priority will be to understand the team, customers, suppliers and economics of the business and protect its successful service-led culture. From there, the expectation is to identify where the next phase of profitable growth can come from.
This is not a passive management role. A meaningful proportion of annual revenue is project-related, so the business must continually develop new opportunities and replenish its pipeline. The General Manager therefore needs to enjoy the commercial side of leadership and be comfortable driving both new-business development and existing-account growth.
There is also an opportunity to continue modernising aspects of the business, including CRM, pricing discipline, commercial data, quoting processes, stock efficiency and the intelligent use of new technology, while retaining the entrepreneurial pace that has made the company successful.
Relevant backgrounds could include specialist B2B distribution, industrial supply, technical wholesale, building products, electrical or plumbing distribution, merchanting, materials distribution, plastics and/or packaging or other product-led B2B environments.
Specific product knowledge is not essential. What matters much more is understanding the economics of distribution: buying well, selling well, protecting margin, managing stock and working capital, developing customers and recognising a good commercial opportunity when you see one.
You will need to be:
- Commercially sharp and numerate
- Sales-led and customer-facing
- Entrepreneurial and comfortable making decisions
- Strong on relationships with customers and suppliers
- Credible with an experienced team
- Strategic enough to think about where the business goes next
- Hands-on enough to stay close to the detail
- Comfortable operating with significant autonomy and accountability
- Energetic, proactive and motivated by profitable growth
This role would particularly suit someone who has become frustrated by the bureaucracy of a larger corporate environment and wants the freedom to genuinely influence how a business is run.
Reward:
The remuneration model reflects the entrepreneurial nature of the role.
There is a competitive executive package together with a significant profit-related bonus opportunity, meaning that strong business performance can take total annual earnings comfortably into six figures.
The philosophy is straightforward: if you grow the business profitably and create value, you share meaningfully in the success.
Location:
The business is based in Hertfordshire, and the General Manager will need to live within a sensible commuting distance.
This is a visible leadership role rather than a remote management position. The successful candidate will spend meaningful time with the team, customers and suppliers, with some travel across the UK.
Why consider it?
If you want to run a successful SME with genuine authority over how it develops — while retaining the security, investment capacity and resources of a much larger group — this is an unusually attractive opportunity.
You will inherit a profitable platform, an experienced team and strong customer relationships.
What happens next will largely be down to you.
To apply please send your CV in confidence to CV@wilsonbrook.com
Commercial Managers - Two Appointments
Commercial Managers - Two Appointments
Williams Trade Supplies | Fareham, Hampshire | Two appointments
Two significant commercial opportunities within an independent plumbing and heating merchant that is investing again, evolving its model and creating greater capacity to pursue growth.
Williams Trade Supplies is an established independent plumbing and heating merchant with 47 trade counters and annual turnover in excess of £110m. Having successfully navigated a difficult period of trading, the business is now looking ahead to a renewed phase of selective investment and growth.
There is a lot happening. The business is developing its contracts operation, growing renewables, investing in marketing and digital, improving product data and online convenience, and evolving long-established approaches to pricing and customer access. Williams remains firmly focused on serving the trade exceptionally well, while becoming more open-minded about how customers find, engage with and buy from the business.
As part of this next phase, Williams is expanding its commercial team with two additional Commercial Manager appointments. The intention is to appoint one Commercial Manager with responsibility for Heating & Tools and a second covering Pipe, Fittings & Radiators, while retaining some flexibility around the precise category mix to reflect the strengths of the successful candidates.
The roles
These are end-to-end commercial roles with genuine ownership. Each Commercial Manager will be responsible for their categories from supplier negotiation and ranging through to pricing, margin, promotions, stock availability and how products are ultimately traded through the branch network.
Williams is deliberately looking for two people who will lead and own their categories rather than wait to be directed. Working with Commercial Director Patrick Skilton, the successful candidates will analyse performance, identify opportunities, develop category plans and then drive them through to delivery. There is an established trading rhythm, including three Price Buster promotional cycles each year, but considerable scope to challenge existing thinking and develop new commercial opportunities.
The two roles will bring different category challenges. Some areas require rigorous attention to range, availability, pricing and margin optimisation; others offer a more entrepreneurial trading opportunity, with scope to spot deals, create promotional activity, move quickly and unlock categories that have not always received the dedicated focus they could justify.
Each of the two Commercial Managers is expected to work closely with a Commercial Assistant, providing day-to-day direction, development and category knowledge. Previous people-management experience would therefore be advantageous, although Williams will consider someone with clear leadership potential and a genuine desire to develop others.
Who are we looking for?
The strongest candidates for these appointments will combine commercial judgement, analytical capability and energy. Williams needs people who can understand the whole commercial equation: what to buy, on what terms, how to range it, where to price it, how to protect or improve margin and how to create demand in the market.
Relevant plumbing & heating merchanting experience would be valuable and will provide a natural talent pool, but it is not essential. Williams is open to strong candidates from other B2B trading and distribution environments where they have genuinely operated across the full commercial cycle rather than within a narrow procurement or sales silo.
Above all, neither appointment is for somebody looking simply to maintain what already exists. Williams wants proactive, commercially driven people who can prioritise what creates value, take considered risks, use their initiative and get things done. One appointment may be a highly experienced industry operator; there is also scope for a high-potential candidate ready to step into broader responsibility.
Why Williams Trade Supplies?
Williams combines the scale of a substantial merchant with the agility of an independent business. Having successfully navigated challenging market conditions, the business is now looking forward and considering where to invest for its next phase of growth: which categories to develop and how digital, contracts, renewables and new routes to market can create additional revenue and profit.
The culture remains an important part of the proposition. The Williams Way places the customer first and sees Central Support teams as there to enable the people serving customers, rather than to create unnecessary bureaucracy. The business values doing the right thing, continually improving and building mutually beneficial long-term relationships with colleagues, customers and suppliers.
For both Commercial Managers, that means being close enough to branches and customers to understand what will actually sell, while having the confidence to lead category strategy rather than simply respond to individual requests.
The opportunity offers
· Genuine ownership of important commercial categories within a £100m+ independent merchant
· The chance to join as the business looks to invest and grow again
· Significant opportunities across digital, contracts, renewables and underdeveloped product categories
· End-to-end commercial responsibility covering buying, ranging, pricing, margin, promotions and trading
· Working closely with the Commercial Director and having considerable autonomy to develop and implement ideas
· The opportunity to manage and develop a Commercial Assistant and broaden leadership experience
· A pragmatic, down-to-earth culture with relatively little corporate bureaucracy
· Scope to become involved in wider commercial projects beyond the core category remit as the business evolves
Location and working pattern
Both roles are based from the Williams Trade Supplies Fareham office. Proximity to Fareham is preferred, with the normal expectation being four office days and Friday available for home working. However, Williams is prepared to be flexible for an exceptional candidate based further afield, provided there is regular meaningful presence in the business. Some supplier visits and travel will be required.
Interested in finding out more?
Interested in an initial confidential conversation? Contact Imogen Pearson at imogen@wilsonbrook.com or send your CV to cv@wilsonbrook.com.
Commercial Manager – Tools
Commercial Manager – Tools
Elliotts | Hampshire | Hybrid flexibility
Could you turn an established specialist tools business into a significantly bigger, more competitive operation?
We are partnering with Elliotts, the independent, sixth-generation family-owned builders’ merchant established in 1842, to recruit a Commercial Manager – Tools. This is an opportunity to take real ownership of the tools category, from range and supplier strategy to pricing, commercial performance and the next stage of online growth.
Elliotts has an established tools business, a strong reputation with trade customers and clear ambition to compete more effectively with specialist and online operators. The successful individual will help shape the strategy with the Commercial Director and then personally drive delivery, supported by central procurement, pricing, ecommerce and data specialists.
What you will do
· Lead the tools category proposition across specialist branches, the wider merchant network and ecommerce.
· Develop winning product ranges and identify growth, rationalisation and innovation opportunities.
· Improve supplier terms, buying effectiveness, pricing and profitability.
· Accelerate online range expansion and build a compelling, competitive digital offer.
· Own the numbers, challenge convention and turn a commercial plan into measurable results.
What we are looking for
A commercially sharp, hands-on category, trading, buying or product leader—or a proven commercial talent ready for greater ownership. You will have delivered tangible growth, negotiated effectively, worked confidently with margin and pricing data, and understood how digital channels change customer expectations.
Professional tools or power tools expertise is particularly attractive, whether gained in manufacturing, distribution, specialist retail, trade retail or merchanting. We are open to outstanding candidates from adjacent product-led environments who can demonstrate directly relevant commercial achievements.
Why Elliotts?
This is a genuine build opportunity with visibility, autonomy and backing from a longstanding independent business. It is not a branch operations role or a maintenance buying job; it is a chance to improve a category and help shape its future.
Interested in an initial confidential conversation? Contact Imogen Pearson at imogen@wilsonbrook.com or send your CV to cv@wilsonbrook.com.
Regional Directors – B2B Multi-site Distribution
Regional Directors – B2B Multi-site Distribution
Three opportunities across the North West North East and South West
Can you improve the performance of a regional branch network by developing the people who lead it?
Wilson Brook is partnering with a substantial building materials and trade distribution group to appoint three Regional Directors. These appointments form part of a wider programme to strengthen leadership, improve commercial performance and bring greater consistency to a network of customer facing branches.
Each role offers responsibility for a significant region, reporting to a Divisional Managing Director and leading Branch Managers. You will shape regional priorities, improve sales and margin, control costs and build management capability in a business that is investing in how it operates.
The opportunity
This is a demanding environment with substantial scope to make a difference. You will use financial and operational information to focus attention where it matters, coach managers to take ownership and ensure that improvements translate into better outcomes for customers and colleagues.
You will work across sales and specialist functions, balancing local commercial judgement with group standards. The regional priorities vary, from developing an established team to bringing new managers together and realising a larger performance improvement opportunity.
What you will bring
· Proven leadership across multiple branches or sites, with regional P&L responsibility and measurable commercial results.
· The ability to develop managers, address underperformance and build effective teams across a dispersed territory.
· Sound financial judgement and evidence of improving sales, margin, productivity and controllable costs.
· Experience implementing change, collaborating with central teams and delivering within clear operating frameworks.
· Energy, resilience and practical judgement, with the ability to prioritise effectively in a fast moving business.
Builders’ merchanting and specialist trade distribution experience will be valuable. We also welcome relevant backgrounds in other B2B branch networks or trade retail where candidates can demonstrate comparable commercial responsibility and established multi-site leadership.
You should live within, or within practical travelling distance of, the relevant region. Regular branch engagement and effective remote management will both be important.
Find out more
For a confidential discussion, contact Jonny Pegler at Wilson Brook Consulting, or send your CV to cv@wilsonbrook.com, indicating your preferred region. Further information about the business and the opportunity will be shared during the initial conversation.
Senior Quantity Surveyor
A senior commercial appointment with an established independent main contractor!
CONFIDENTIAL SEARCH
CHANNEL ISLANDS
Senior Quantity Surveyor
A senior commercial appointment with an established independent main contractor
We are conducting a confidential search for an experienced Quantity Surveyor or Senior Quantity Surveyor to join a successful, independently owned contractor in the Channel Islands. This is a growth appointment within the Commercial team, reporting to the Commercial Manager and offering meaningful responsibility from the outset.
The opportunity
- Take commercial ownership of a varied portfolio of live building projects, typically ranging from approximately £2m to £20m.
- Work across residential, commercial, public-sector, refurbishment, heritage and high-quality bespoke schemes.
- Manage several projects concurrently, typically up to four, supported by experienced operational and commercial colleagues.
- Join an informal, supportive and low-politics business where good judgement, initiative and constructive challenge are valued.
Your remit
- Lead project procurement, subcontractor accounts, valuations, cost reporting, CVRs, variations, forecasting, claims and final accounts.
- Control commercial and contractual risk, cash flow and project profitability while maintaining productive relationships with clients, consultants and delivery teams.
- Operate as a senior, hands-on member of the Commercial team, bringing structure, sound judgement and practical commercial discipline to project delivery.
What we are looking for
- An experienced contractor-side Quantity Surveyor or Senior Quantity Surveyor with a strong record of independently managing projects through the full commercial cycle.
- Broad building-sector experience, ideally spanning residential, commercial, public-sector, refurbishment, heritage or high-quality bespoke work.
- Commercially rigorous, calm and relationship-led, with the organisation and confidence to manage multiple priorities with autonomy.
- Degree-qualified in Quantity Surveying, Construction Management or a related discipline, or able to demonstrate equivalent practical experience; RICS or CIOB status would be advantageous.
Relocation and package
This is a permanent Channel Islands-based role and requires genuine commitment to relocation. Practical relocation support will be tailored to the successful candidate and, where relevant, their family; the employer can also secure an appropriate employment licence if required. The wider package includes a company-funded phone and professional subscriptions, with healthcare after one year's service and eligibility for a discretionary performance-related bonus.
For a confidential initial conversation
Imogen Pearson | Wilson Brook Consulting | imogen@wilsonbrook.com
Confidential Senior Commercial Leadership Opportunity
Confidential Senior Commercial Leadership Opportunity
Wilson Brook Consulting has been retained to identify an experienced senior commercial, category or procurement leader for a newly created appointment within a substantial organisation operating across the construction and built environment sector.
Reporting directly to the Managing Director, the successful candidate will lead an established team and take responsibility for strengthening the organisation’s approach to category management, supplier strategy and commercial negotiation.
Key priorities will include:
- Developing and implementing a clear category and supplier strategy.
- Leading major commercial negotiations.
- Improving terms, value, service and supplier performance.
- Developing the capability of the existing team.
- Introducing greater structure, insight and commercial discipline.
- Contributing to the organisation’s wider strategic direction.
The strongest candidates are likely to have held a senior buying, category, procurement or commercial leadership role within building materials, distribution, trade retail, or a relevant B2B environment.
They will bring a strong track record of negotiation, supplier management, team leadership and measurable commercial improvement, together with the credibility to influence senior stakeholders and lead change effectively.
This is a rare opportunity to shape a strategically important function and become a highly influential member of the organisation’s leadership team, with scope for the role to broaden over time.
This is a hybrid role with regular travel to suppliers, industry events, conferences and occasional presence in a central office. We’re open to where potential candidates live within the UK.
The search is being conducted on a strictly confidential basis. Further information will be provided following an initial discussion and completion of the appropriate confidentiality process.
Applications via CV@wilsonbrook.com
Lead Consultant Jonny Pegler
Managing Director — Southern-Based Construction Materials
Confidential Executive Opportunity
Managing Director — Southern-Based Construction Materials
Southern England
We are working on a strictly confidential Managing Director appointment for a long-established, privately owned building materials group with a Southern-based UK platform.
The business operates in practical, site-led construction materials markets, supplying trade, contractor and project customers where reliability, service, logistics, technical consistency and strong relationships are central to performance. It is not a distressed situation; the opportunity is about planned succession, professionalisation and the next phase of operational and commercial development.
The group has real assets, established customer relationships, experienced people and a supportive long-term ownership structure. The UK operation includes complementary materials activities with different operating rhythms, giving the incoming MD the opportunity to bring clearer leadership, stronger management cadence and a more joined-up commercial approach without losing the local, service-led character of the businesses.
This is a confidential leadership opportunity suited to a commercially sharp, people-led operator who combines full P&L ownership, customer credibility and operational grip. The successful candidate will lead through a structured handover, protect continuity, strengthen profitability, improve customer service and continue the cultural and process improvements already underway.
The role would suit an existing Managing Director, General Manager, Regional Director, Business Unit Director, Commercial Director with broader leadership exposure, COO or senior number two from construction materials, aggregates, concrete, mortar, cementitious products, quarrying, heavyside manufacturing, building products, merchanting or an adjacent asset-heavy B2B environment.
The ideal candidate will bring strong commercial judgement, confidence around pricing and margin, experience managing important customer relationships, and enough operational credibility to engage with plant, fleet, logistics, production, compliance and site-based teams. Experience in a privately owned, family-owned or owner-managed business would be advantageous, although candidates from larger groups will be considered where they have proven they can operate without excessive corporate infrastructure.
This is not a corporate maintenance role. It requires visibility, pace, emotional intelligence and the appetite to be close to customers, people, numbers and execution. For the right person, it offers genuine autonomy, direct ownership access, meaningful accountability and the chance to shape the next chapter of a substantial Southern-based materials platform.
All conversations will be handled in strict confidence. The company identity and detailed brief will only be disclosed after appropriate qualification and confidentiality controls.
Email your CV (in confidence) to CV@wilsonbrook.com
This assignment is being managed by Matthew Lambert & Neil Holloway
Product Innovation Director- Stackright & Newspace
Excellent Opportunity to join UK’s largest independent manufacturers of modular buildings!
Product Innovation Director
Stackright & Newspace | Flexible UK Location
Wilson Brook is exclusively retained by Stackright and Newspace to appoint a Product Innovation Director into a newly created senior leadership role.
Following the integration of the two businesses, Stackright and Newspace now form one of the UK’s largest independent manufacturers of modular buildings, portable accommodation and specialist site solutions.
The business is entering its next phase of growth and is looking for an entrepreneurial innovation leader to shape the future product portfolio.
Reporting directly to the Group Managing Director, you will create and lead a structured innovation roadmap, identifying emerging market opportunities and taking technically led products from concept through development, testing and commercial launch.
Potential areas of innovation include:
- Renewable-powered modular accommodation
- Battery storage and solar PV integration
- Off-grid power and site infrastructure
- Smart and connected modular assets
- Premium workforce and sleeper accommodation
- Low-carbon construction solutions
This is not a conventional engineering management role. It is a genuine blank-sheet opportunity to build a new innovation capability, influence investment decisions and work across commercial, engineering, manufacturing and operational teams.
We are interested in candidates from modular construction, advanced manufacturing, renewable energy, battery storage, power infrastructure, clean technology, construction technology or related product-led sectors.
You will need a strong track record of commercialising technically complex products, combined with the judgement to distinguish genuinely valuable innovation from ideas that are interesting but impractical.
The successful candidate will be commercially sharp, technically credible, practical and influential. You must be comfortable working in a fast-moving manufacturing environment and capable of turning customer problems and emerging technologies into scalable, profitable products.
The role offers a flexible UK base, with regular travel to the company’s manufacturing facilities in Skelmersdale and Lydney, as well as customer, supplier and technology partner locations.
This is a rare opportunity to create something from the ground up, work directly with an ambitious leadership team and help redefine how modular accommodation and temporary site infrastructure are designed, powered and deployed.
To apply please send your CV to CV@wilsonbrook.com
Lead Consultant: Jonny Pegler
