Škoda appoints John French as head of sales operations

Škoda has appointed John French as its new head of sales operations.

After three years working in China as regional sales and marketing strategy manager for Volkswagen Passenger Cars, French will start his new role this month.

French, who has been with Volkswagen Group for 15 years, returns to a brand he knows well, having previously worked in the Škoda planning team from 2005-2008.

He will replace Martin Barrow-Starkey, who leaves the brand to take up the role of head of retailer learning services at Volkswagen Group UK.

“It is a pleasure to welcome John back on board,” said Alasdair Stewart, brand director, Škoda UK. I believe John’s wealth of experience will help us move the brand forward.

French added: “It’s an exciting time to be joining Škoda. With a refreshed model line-up, including a new Fabia and a new Superb introduced this year, the brand has gone from strength to strength.  We passed a million sales globally last year and in the UK we have clear ambitions to continue our growth. I look forward to working with the wider Škoda team and a fantastic retailer network in order to realise these ambitions.”