5:29 pm, June 26, 2020
Nissan Motor GB has had two changes to its directorship, with Andrew Sellars leaving the brand to pursue other interests.
Nicolas Verneuil has been appointed to replace him as sales director, following three years as marketing director.
Verneuil worked at Nissan for 15 years and has a wealth of international, regional and local experience in customer and dealer-facing roles.
Nicholas Thomas, who returns from Japan where he led Nissan’s global EV business and worldwide launch of the Leaf, will takeover from Verneuil as marketing director.
Thomas spent his early years in dealer network development and aftersales, focussing for several years on product marketing, including as head of marketing operations.
Verneuil said: ‘With our brand’s renewed vitality and the recently announced transformational Nissan NEXT mid-term plan, this is a great opportunity to lead the sales team at NMGB.
‘Nissan already has a proven track record in electric vehicles and crossovers, which we will build on with an exciting product plan for the coming years. I look forward to working in partnership with our dealer network, fleet partners and customers across the value chain to capitalise on these opportunities.’
Thomas added: ‘I am delighted to return to my home market and join a successful team at this exciting time for Nissan.
‘With momentum gathering around the successful Juke launch, the new Ariya electric crossover being unveiled imminently, and a new Qashqai just around the corner, Nissan is perfectly positioned to meet customer demands.’
Andrew Humberstone, managing director of Nissan Motor GB, commented: ‘I’d like to welcome Nic to NMGB and look forward to working with him to accelerate our operational restart here in the UK, and also congratulate Nic Verneuil on his new appointment.
‘Nic replaces Andrew Sellars who will leave the business to pursue interests outside of Nissan. We would like to thank Andrew for his valued contribution over the last three years where he has worked hard to improve dealer relations, evident in our significantly improved NFDA score.
‘His strong focus on driving retail share has improved the overall quality of business, and he has also made significant developments in our used car and e-commerce programmes. We wish him all the very best for the future.’
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