Vanaways sales team takes to the field

INDEPENDENT vehicle supply specialist Vanaways is mixing up the way its staff work, with the appointment of a new business development manager who will be out on the road, taking the business to customers’ doors.

Hannah Pearson has joined the Bristol-based company as its first sales specialist to be based away from the office. Reporting to business development director Liam Nicholas, Hannah’s role will be to visit prospective new clients across the UK, with the aim to bring in new customers to Vanaways.

Having previously spent four years in a similar role for one of the UK’s largest commercial vehicle rental providers, Hannah arrives with an excellent background to succeed in her new role. Prior to that, she spent three years with a leading car and van hire operator, so knows the industry well.

Moving to Vanaways is already such a refreshing change. We’re a much smaller organisation, which means decisions are taken and put into action far quicker. But at the same time, the way the company works, with direct access to vehicles from a wide range of manufacturers, means I have virtually unlimited availability and can give my customers the vans they want to very tight timescales.

Hannah Pearson, Business Development Manager, Vanaways

Hannah’s brief is to focus mainly on companies with fleets of 10 vehicles or more – and although she will work across the whole country, the initial plan is to target operators in the north of England.

“I’m originally from Durham, and now live in Liverpool, so it makes sense for me to spend more time visiting prospective customers closer to home,” she said. “If you take Merseyside, Manchester, Leeds and all the towns and cities between, that’s a lot of potential new business!”

Liam Nicholas added: “We’re delighted to have added Hannah to our close-knit team – she brings a great deal of expertise and experience, as well as huge dose of enthusiasm, to Vanaways.

“We’re sure she’ll be a great success and our plan, as this side of the business takes off, is to add more new field-based Business Development Managers to our line-up. We’ll continue to stand by our pledge to provide the best possible customer service because – especially in the fleet market, where operators are replacing vehicles on a regular basis – that’s how we’ll prove to people that we’re worthy of winning and retaining their business.”

In recent years, Vanaways has signed a pair of important partnership agreements, including with trade and DIY retailer Toolstation where vehicles are marketed directly through Toolstation’s platforms, and with temperature-controlled conversion firm CoolKit, for quick access to a wide range of refrigerated vans. Vanaways also moved into a new, purpose-built office in January earlier this year, and is looking to recruit further team members for the business development arm in coming months.

Meanwhile, Hannah is aiming to reach new heights outside work, as well as in her new job. A keen hill-walker, she recently completed a traverse of the Yorkshire Three Peaks – a 24-mile route crossing a trio of that county’s highest summits – and is working her way through the ‘Wainwrights’, 214 fells featured in author Alfred Wainwright’s celebrated hiking guidebooks to the Lake District.