Thurlow Nunn has appointed operations manager William Tew as its new managing director and Ashleigh Lewis as its chief financial officer.

Tew, who was an existing director at the Cambridgeshire-based business, assumes the MD role following James Thurlow’s move into a non-executive chairman role with the Thurlow Nunn Group of Companies alongside a new role as managing director of its agricultural division, Thurlow Nunn Standen.

Thurlow said that Tew had demonstrated his passion for the business and for continuous improvement, adding that he had already “gained the respect of his colleagues and made a valuable contribution to the improved performance of Thurlow Nunn”.

Lewis becomes finance director today (March 1) as Philip Addinall takes his retirement from the business.

Addinall had been with the company since 2008 and had made “a significant impact on the group”, a statement said.

Lewis joins the business having spent 20 years with Moto Hospitality.

James Thurlow said: “We were impressed by Ashleigh’s open communication skills, her finance and commercial background and her valuable experience in retail.”

Tew is said to be already planning the creation of new roles within Thurlow Nunn's vehicle division to support the rapid investment into digitalisation, most notably advertising a digital sales graduate programme through which he hopes to attract new entrants into the industry. 

Tew said: “In the past 12 months we have seen some significant changes in Automotive Retailing with the accelerated onset of digital activities.

"Thurlow Nunn intends to ensure that they provide the best omnichannel customer experience from it’s 11 franchised locations, and two non-franchised.”