Assuming responsibility for driving forward its position within the automotive aftermarket across the central region of the country, Banner, one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of batteries and battery accessories has appointed David Ward as Business Development Manager.
Reporting directly to Country Manager, Lee Quinney, David will be responsible for targeting Banner’s diverse and growing customer base of motor factors, garages, independent distributors and other specialist automotive parts outlets. He occupies the new position following the retirement earlier this year of Paul Mills.
With more than 16 years’ experience of the UK aftermarket having held previous position in national, key account and Business Development management. David has a proven track record within the sales and customer liaison arena at factor, national distribution and buying group level. Known for his ability in developing strong and sustained customer relationships and identifying new business opportunities, David previously held the National Account Manager role at Carwood and spent five years working as Key Account Manager with Robert Bosch Ltd.
Having started his career as a mechanic with Formula One Auto Centres, David has developed a broad skill set that has equipped him to areas such as not only sales, but customer service, negotiation and data analysis. As keen sports enthusiast, football in particular, David maintains an active lifestyle outside of the work environment. Having had the opportunity to play football for such esteemed clubs as Leicester City and Nottingham Forest in his early years, David holds various coaching qualifications, which he has used to teach children aged 5-12 on a voluntary basis for Nottingham Forest. Additionally, David is a car enthusiast and has a particular passion for his own rare, classic model.
As an enthusiastic David states: “I am delighted to get the opportunity to be joining Banner at such an important time in their ongoing development here in the UK. Not only are they one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of original equipment batteries, and a family-owned business, having recently rebranded I am extremely motivated to help rollout the new look to customers on the cusp of the new battery season.”
Commenting on the appointment, Lee Quinney said: “The whole team at Banner is delighted to welcome David onboard. He has a proven track record in the automotive aftermarket, and we are confident this will prove instrumental in strengthening Banner’s position centrally across the UK. Supplying a first-class service to our customer base remains one of our main priorities, together with promoting Banner’s original equipment pedigree, and David will help spearhead this moving forwards.”
