SINCLAIR ‘SUPERFORCE’ SEES RETAIL AND PROFESSIONAL SALES TEAMS MERGE Leading growing media, fertilisers and chemicals producer, William Sinclair Horticulture has combined its retail and professional sales teams into a single ‘superforce’ which it claims will bring service and logistics benefits to all customers as the company commissions its new state-of-the-art £15m growing media production facility at Ellesmere Port. Announcing the new sales structure, Commercial Director, Richard Carr said that Sinclair’s new integrated Ellesmere Port hub made a unified supply chain not only possible but also highly advantageous in terms of efficiency, flexibility and service levels as the company gears up to ship a raft of major new products for 2015. Mr Carr said: “With many of our customers buying both retail and professional products from us, and those products soon to be made and shipped from a world-class supersite, an integrated sales team will help both them and us. In many cases, we will be able to ship both retail and professional products on the same lorry so logistics benefits will accrue from a more dynamic, agile and efficient supply chain.” The restructuring has seen the appointment of Chris Hepburn, formerly with Hozelock, to fill the new cross-company role of Horticultural Sales Director; and Jon Watson takes on the new role of National Retail Sales Director with responsibility for national accounts. Tony Nelson has joined from Westland to become Northern Regional Sales Manager while Tara Truman assumes a new role as Southern Regional Sales Manager. Several existing sales executives have been given more senior roles as cross-company Area Sales Managers, nine of whom will cover the country with back-up from local distributors as needed. Large growers who require more technical support will be serviced by three new dedicated Senior Professional Sales Managers combining many years of experience – Jon Evans, covering the west, Cliff Day (east) and Hayley Perrin (south). The company, owner of famous brands such as J. Arthur Bower’s, New Horizon, Growing Success, Silvaperl, DeadFast and Sinclair Professional, says that it has taken down the barriers that segregated its retail and professional businesses and that all customers can now buy and sell both ranges. Its new Ellesmere Port plant, which houses leading edge technology dedicated to the production of high performance peat-free retail compost made from composted wood, comes on stream in August following a five year research, design and building programme.
