Leadership Recruitment in Preston
Leadership appointments set the trajectory of a commercial function for years, and they are the hires where a misstep is most costly and most visible. We do this for SMEs and scale-ups across Preston and the wider North West, with on-the-ground knowledge of the Preston commercial market.
Preston sits at the heart of the Lancashire economy, with a position on the M6, M55 and M61 that makes it a natural distribution hub for central and north Lancashire. A substantial advanced manufacturing and aerospace supply chain drives in-factory handling and automation demand, while the distribution base sustains lift truck, racking and storage sales. The University of Central Lancashire provides a strong graduate flow for commercial and technical seats, and the motorway position gives field teams wide regional reach.
Advanced manufacturing and aerospace supply
Manufacturing
A substantial aerospace and advanced manufacturing supply chain drives in-factory handling and automation demand around Preston.
Distribution and logistics operators
Warehousing and distribution
Central Lancashire distribution sites along the M6 and M55 sustain a steady forklift and storage market.
Industrial manufacturing sites
Manufacturing
A broad industrial manufacturing base supports lift truck, racking and mezzanine demand.
Regional handling and storage vendors
Forklift and materials handling
Materials handling dealers and storage installers serve the central and north Lancashire market from the Preston hub.
Preston's commercial talent pool tilts industrial and manufacturing, with strong supply of complex-sale commercial leaders, sales engineers and key account managers. Specialist automation and software supply is thinner and most vendors recruit across the wider Lancashire and Greater Manchester market. The cost of living is meaningfully below Manchester, which supports senior relocation, and the university provides a strong graduate flow for internal and pre-sales seats.
Preston Station is the busiest in Lancashire, with direct services to Manchester (45 min), Liverpool (60 min), Lancaster (20 min) and Glasgow. The M6 and M55 give direct motorway access across the North West.
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.
What you get
Why Evara
Local
On-the-ground in North West. We know the Preston employer base, the talent pools and the comp norms first-hand, not from a database.
Operator-led
Every Evara partner has carried a number. Leadership Recruitment engagements are run by people who have built and led commercial functions, not pure intermediaries.
Honest
If a hire is the wrong move for your stage in Preston, we will say so. We would rather lose the fee than place a senior leader into a seat that will not work.
FAQs
Preston sits on the M6, M55 and M61, which makes it a natural distribution hub for central and north Lancashire and a practical base for field sales covering a wide territory, with an advanced manufacturing base driving handling and automation demand.
Industrial and manufacturing sales, with strong representation of sales engineers, key account managers and complex-sale commercial leaders from aerospace, advanced manufacturing and industrial-products backgrounds.
In-factory handling and automation for the aerospace and manufacturing base, plus distribution handling, forklift and storage systems across central Lancashire.
Preston itself, plus Lytham St Annes, Garstang, Penwortham, Kirkham and the Ribble Valley, with a minority commuting from Lancaster or Blackpool.
Yes. Most leadership appointments are run discreetly, protecting both the hiring business and the candidates being approached. We work to a strict confidentiality protocol with a sanitised brief in market.
Heads of Sales, Sales and Commercial Directors, Managing Directors, country and regional leaders, VP Sales and Chief Commercial Officers, plus board and non-executive appointments across the intralogistics industry.
Nearby
Preston-based engagements regularly cover the wider commuter belt, including Chorley, Leyland, Lytham St Annes, Garstang, Penwortham.
Related tools
Related Guide chapters
Decision guides
Email Rachel Lunn and the Evara team. We will reply within one working day with live market data for the role you have in mind.
Email Rachel Lunn