People in intralogistics
A curated, sourced watch list of women leading across materials handling, from the forklift OEMs, dealers and warehouse automation firms to the sector's trade bodies, weighted towards commercial and sales roles
Materials handling still reads as a male industry from the outside. It is not. Women lead sales at the largest forklift makers, run national dealerships, found warehouse robotics companies, sit on the boards of the global manufacturers and run the bodies that set the sector's standards.
This is a watch list of women leading across materials handling, weighted towards commercial and sales roles and towards the UK, with a handful of international leaders at the global OEMs. Each entry carries a named, live public source. It is not a ranking and it is not a complete market map, so we say it is verified, not exhaustive, and we expect to keep adding to it.
A note from Rachel
I spent more than eleven years in material handling at Toyota Material Handling. It is one of the largest businesses in the sector, and I was fortunate in the people who led it. They judged me on my work and never on my gender, backed my ideas, gave me room to grow and trusted me with real responsibility. They showed me what good leadership in this industry can look like, and they are a large part of why I care so much about getting this right.
Not everyone in our industry can say the same, and the numbers still tell their own story at the senior end. There is real work to be done, right across material handling, before that changes.
That is why I wanted to build this list. It is a small way of pointing to the women already leading in material handling, from the OEM boardrooms to the dealership floor and the robotics firms, and of telling the next group coming through that there is a place for them here. Championing women in this industry is something I intend to keep doing at Evara, not write about once.
Rachel Lunn, Co-Founder of Evara
Women running the sales and commercial engine at the manufacturers and dealers, the functions closest to how materials handling equipment actually gets sold.
Member of the Board of Management, Sales, Jungheinrich
Germany
Leads global sales from the management board of Jungheinrich, a top intralogistics manufacturer, after joining the board in July 2024.
National Customer Service Director, Jungheinrich UK
United Kingdom
Leads national customer service for Jungheinrich UK, the British arm of the German forklift manufacturer, after more than two decades at the company in operational and customer-facing roles.
Managing directors leading the dealerships and national operations that put materials handling equipment on the warehouse floor.
Managing Director, Jofson Ltd
United Kingdom
Began in the family business in the 1980s and now runs Jofson, one of the UK's largest Mitsubishi forklift dealers, profiled in the UKMHA leadership series.
Managing Director, HFT Forklifts
United Kingdom
Started as an apprentice in 1997 and rose to lead HFT Forklifts, which has won multiple Mitsubishi awards under her direction.
Managing Director, STILL Materials Handling UK
United Kingdom
Moved from two decades in retail banking to lead STILL in the UK and Ireland, and now sits on the UKMHA board championing the wider sector.
Managing Director, Moorgate Forklifts
United Kingdom
Took the reins as Managing Director of family firm Moorgate Forklifts in September 2025, continuing a near 30 year independent dealership.
Women holding executive and board posts at the global makers whose forklifts and automation move the world's freight.
Chief People and Sustainability Officer, KION Group
Germany
Sits on the executive board of KION Group, one of the world's largest forklift and warehouse automation groups, in a newly created role uniting people strategy and sustainability.
Vice President, Controller and Chief Accounting Officer, Hyster-Yale
United States
Oversees accounting, financial reporting and controls across Hyster-Yale, the lift truck maker behind the Hyster and Yale brands.
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Hyster-Yale
United States
Leads legal and governance for Hyster-Yale, a marker of women holding senior boardroom facing posts at a major materials handling manufacturer.
Founders and senior operators building and delivering the robots and software behind modern warehouse automation.
Co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Dexory
United Kingdom
Co-founded Oxfordshire robotics firm Dexory, whose autonomous warehouse scanning robots helped win Deloitte's 2025 Technology Fast 50 Women in Leadership award on 1,382 per cent growth.
Vice President of Americas Software, Dematic
United States
Brings more than twenty years in software to lead the Americas software organisation at Dematic, the KION owned automation integrator.
Head of UK Projects, Exotec
United Kingdom
Joined warehouse robotics provider Exotec to lead UK project delivery as it expands across Britain, after a nine year rise to Director of EMEA at automation group Dematic.
Leaders running the trade bodies, training organisations and networks that set standards across materials handling and widen who gets into the sector.
Managing Director, RTITB
United Kingdom
Leads RTITB, the UK and Ireland's largest workplace transport training accreditation body, central to forklift operator safety and standards.
Chief Executive, UK Warehousing Association
United Kingdom
Runs the UKWA, the trade body for warehousing and logistics, and was again named on the 2025 Women in Trade Associations Powerlist.
Co-founder, Women in Logistics UK
United Kingdom
Co-founded Women in Logistics UK and has long campaigned for fairer representation across logistics and materials handling.
This list will grow. If you know a woman leading in materials handling whose work is publicly verifiable, tell us. Evara is a specialist commercial and sales search partner for the sector, and building a fairer view of who leads in it is part of the job.
Suggest a leaderSpecialist commercial search for the intralogistics industry. We reply within one working day.
Email Rachel Lunn