Nissan Motor Company has announced the appointment of Allan Rushforth as corporate vice president for Global Sales.

Rushforth will be based at its Yokohama headquarters, reporting to Nissan’s chief planning officer, Philippe Klein.

The British national started his automotive career in the UK in 1983, working in Fleet sales with the Rover Group. He rose through the organization attaining greater responsibilities until 1996.

Following the purchase of the business in 1996 by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW), Rushforth was assigned to South Korea as executive director, responsible for the launch of the Land Rover brand.

He returned to the UK in 1998 as the sales director for Land Rover, a position he held until he was recruited by Volkswagen Group AG to lead Audi retail operations from its UK headquarters in Milton Keynes. He remained with VW through 2007 and left the group as director of group services. He joined Hyundai in 2007 and has held his current position since then.

Klein said: "Allan's past professional experience includes running sales operations in international markets and working across cultural boundaries.

“Nissan is a company that values cultural diversity and Allan shares this and has demonstrated the ability to lead multicultural teams successfully. I believe that he is uniquely prepared to lead Nissan's global sales."