Ribble Cycles appoints new CEO
Ribble Cycles, the long established bicycle manufacturer and retailer, has appointed Jon Owen as its new chief executive.
Owen has joined the company after four years at Shop Direct where his most recent role was group retail brand director. Prior to that, he spent seven years at Asda and Walmart in a variety of roles in the UK and internationally, culminating in a role as Asda marketing director.
In a second appointment, Matthew Lawson has been named as chief digital officer. His previous positions include e-commerce director at Loveholidays.com and head of conversion at Ao.com.
Ribble Cycles, which is owned by private equity firm True Capital, said the new hires will help strengthen the presence of the brand in both digital and traditional marketing channels.
The current managing director, James Dove, will work alongside Owen and Lawson as brand director. Dove joined the Preston based company in 1990 and is the son of Terry Dove, who acquired the brand in 1980.
Paul Cocker, co-founder of True Capital, said: “I am delighted that we have been able to attract people with the kind of talent and experience that Jon and Matthew will bring to the business. It is indicative of the huge opportunity that Ribble has to grow as a brand and I am confident that, together with James, we now have a world-class management team that can execute on our ambitious plans for the company.”
