Ford's brand man takes Grose chair

Former Ford European brand manager Ian Twinley has been appointed group chairman at John Grose Group, the East Anglian Ford specialist. He replaces owner John Grose who is retiring after 29 years heading the family-run business.

Twinley intends to exploit his blue oval background, including dealer development, marketing and fleet, to develop the group, which has six outlets covering two Ford market areas in East Anglia.

He is considering expanding the business within the East Anglian region with other Ford brands, including PAG and Mazda.

“We have the funds to expand, but there is no rush to buy,” he says. “Like all the volume franchise dealers we have been getting back to a level of profitability after two difficult years. We now need to put inward investment into the growth to ensure we hit our growth plans.”