Aston Barclay has named Karl Ward as the new manager of its Wakefield site to build on its successful opening earlier this year.

Ward, previously remarketing manager at Ogilvie Fleet, has been in the vehicle auction and remarketing industry since 2006.

At Ogilvie Fleet he had control of all remarketing divisions and worked closely with Aston Barclay, selling more than 2,500 units across four of its five sites.

Prior to his role with Ogilvie, he was head of operations and sales including senior auctioneer at British Car Auctions’ (BCA) Leeds site. He has also held roles at SMA and Premier Motor Auctions when the Leeds site was the largest independent auction centre in the UK.

Coupled with his experience as a vendor, Aston Barclay has built up a solid understanding of the processes and service requirements of all stakeholders.

As the centre manager of the group’s newest and most technologically advanced centre, he is charged with building on the successes achieved since Wakefield opened in January and delivering Aston Barclay’s stated goal of ‘connecting customers to cars’.

Neil Hodson, CEO, Aston Barclay Group, said: “It is fantastic to welcome someone with Karl’s experience, insight and enthusiasm onboard to head up our Wakefield centre.

“We have worked closely with Karl for a number of years and very much look forward to supporting him in continuing to build on the centre’s successes to date.”

Ward said: “It is a very exciting time to be joining Aston Barclay as it pursues its strategy of ‘connecting customers to cars and driving the future of remarketing’.

“To have the opportunity to head-up the most advanced auction facility in Europe, if not the world, is fantastic.

“The Wakefield centre is local to me and therefore I understand the important role it plays in the local automotive community. I really look forward to supporting the business with its future development and growth strategies.”

Wakefield currently offers twice weekly dealer sales and a weekly fleet sale offering in excess of 1,000 vehicles per week for leading national and regional dealer groups, as well as top fleets and finance houses.

Photo caption: Martin Potter, group managing director, Aston Barclay (left) with Karl Ward, centre manager, Aston Barclay Wakefield (right)

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