Forklift & Lift Trucks leadership recruitment in Manchester
Confidential search for sales leadership in forklift and lift truck businesses, including Regional Sales Managers, Heads of Sales and Sales Directors. We run replacement and growth appointments discreetly, protecting both the hiring dealer or OEM and the leaders being approached. On the ground in Manchester and across the wider North West forklift & lift trucks cluster.
Manchester sits at the centre of the North West's distribution economy, anchored by Trafford Park and a dense network of logistics parks along the M60, M62 and M6, plus significant air freight through Manchester Airport. That concentration of warehousing, fulfilment and manufacturing creates one of the deepest markets in the country for forklift dealers, racking and storage installers, conveyor and sortation suppliers, and warehouse automation integrators. The city's universities produce one of the largest engineering and commercial graduate pools in the UK, keeping commercial and technical supply strong.
The North West is a major warehousing and manufacturing region, served by the M6 and M62 and the Port of Liverpool. Distribution clusters around Manchester, Warrington, Preston and the wider motorway network create steady demand for lift truck fleets and aftercare. Field-based commercial talent is well distributed across the region, close to the distribution parks and industrial estates that buy and run forklift fleets.
Toyota Material Handling
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Global manufacturer of counterbalance and warehouse trucks with a UK sales and dealer network.
Jungheinrich
Forklift and lift truck OEM
German manufacturer of forklifts and warehouse equipment operating directly in the UK.
Linde Material Handling
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Part of the KION Group, manufacturing counterbalance and warehouse trucks.
Hyster-Yale
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Manufacturer of the Hyster and Yale lift truck ranges.
Mitsubishi Logisnext
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Manufacturer of Mitsubishi, Cat and UniCarriers lift trucks.
Combilift
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Irish manufacturer of multi-directional and long-load handling forklifts sold across the UK.
Crown Equipment
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Manufacturer of electric lift trucks and warehouse equipment.
Hyundai Material Handling
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Manufacturer of counterbalance and warehouse forklift trucks.
Doosan Industrial Vehicle
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Manufacturer of counterbalance and warehouse forklift trucks.
Hangcha
Forklift and lift truck OEM
Forklift manufacturer sold through a UK dealer network.
Briggs Equipment
Material handling dealer
UK provider of forklift sales, hire and fleet management across multiple brands.
The UK forklift commercial talent pool is mature and relationship-driven. Many Area and Territory Sales Managers have spent long tenures with a single OEM or dealer, building dense local customer books, which makes passive search the dominant route to strong hires. Field sales talent clusters around the major distribution corridors where the customers are. Director-level supply is more concentrated, and the best people are often tied to fleet account relationships and long incentive cycles, so confidential approaches matter.
Pay in the forklift and lift truck market is driven by territory size, the mix of new equipment, hire and used sales, and whether a role carries national fleet accounts or a local patch. Capital equipment and managed fleet deals with long sales cycles tend to command more than transactional hire and used sales. Company vehicle, fuel and the structure of commission against margin rather than revenue are usually as important to candidates as base, and pay rises with the seniority and complexity of the accounts held.
Manchester Piccadilly and Victoria provide direct national rail. The Metrolink tram network connects MediaCityUK, Spinningfields, the Northern Quarter and Trafford. Manchester Airport gives the city national and international reach unique among UK regions.
How we work
01
We start with the commercial mandate the leader must deliver: the growth plan, the team they inherit or build, the customers and channels, and the stakeholders they answer to. We design the seat before we search for the person.
02
We build a confidential map of the relevant leadership pool across competitors and adjacent intralogistics sub-sectors, protecting both the hiring business and the leaders we approach.
03
Senior people are approached with a sanitised, credible narrative. Named-employer messaging is held back until second-stage conversations, so a sensitive search stays sensitive.
04
Leadership assessment goes beyond track record to judgement, team building, change capability and the ability to operate at board level. We test the things that actually predict success in the seat.
05
A considered shortlist, then full support through offer, acceptance and a structured first-100-days plan agreed with the board. We are as comfortable advising on team design and succession as filling a single seat.
FAQs
Area, territory and regional sales managers, new truck and used truck sales specialists, short-term hire sales, national fleet and key account managers, and sales leadership up to Sales Director, for OEMs, dealers and distributors.
Lift truck sales rely on fleet economics, application knowledge, finance and lease structures and long customer relationships that do not transfer from generalist field sales. A specialist recruiter screens for the commercial behaviours and product credibility that actually win and keep this business.
Yes. We work with manufacturers selling direct, exclusive dealer networks and independent distributors, and we calibrate each search to how that particular business goes to market.
Manchester is anchored by Trafford Park, one of the largest industrial estates in Europe, with dense logistics parks along the M60, M62 and M6 and significant air freight. That concentration of end users makes it one of the deepest markets in the country for handling, storage and automation.
A typical senior commercial search runs 8 to 12 weeks. The market is competitive, the best candidates are passive, and counter-offers are common, which lengthens the close phase.
Email Rachel Lunn and the team. We will reply within one working day with a Manchester-specific forklift & lift trucks market read for the role you have in mind.
Email Rachel Lunn/leadership-recruitment/manchester/forklift-lift-trucks
Specialist commercial search for the intralogistics industry. We reply within one working day.
Email Rachel Lunn