People: Butcher & Barlow; Broadway; Time Finance; Hillsgreen; Napthens

From left: Tim Bailey, Mark Turner, Jonathan Aldersley

Law firm Butcher & Barlow has announced a raft of key promotions and appointments across its 10 North West offices.

The announcement comes on the back of news last week of changes in the senior management team following the retirement later this year of longstanding senior partner Charles Barlow.

Jonathan Aldersley, the firm’s new senior partner, said: “The firm has been through a period of transition and expansion, and we see these internal promotions as another step on our journey.”

Mark Turner has joined the partnership. Mark, who joined the firm as a solicitor last year, works within the commercial team and has a specialism in dispute resolution, said: “This is an exciting time for Butcher & Barlow. I’m incredibly proud to be part of such a forward thinking firm in terms of its collaborative way of working both internally and with clients, but also one which is able to draw on its long heritage and experience within the sector. It’s quite unique.”

Tim Bailey, who joined the firm as a partner last year, has now become head of the private client department, and a further 11 employees from across the firm have been promoted to associate.

Tim said: “Since joining Butcher & Barlow last year I’ve been impressed with their focus, drive and desire for growth. We’ve seen increased demand for our services across all departments, and this during an incredibly difficult and challenging time for most businesses.”

Jonathan added: “We pride ourselves on understanding our clients’ needs and providing sound commercial advice. For that we need the right calibre of staff – and these internal promotions and appointments do just that.”

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The founder of one of the country’s newest names in insurance broking has been elected to represent industry peers across Greater Manchester.

Daniel Lloyd-John, the chief executive of Broadway Insurance Brokers, will serve as chairman of the area’s regional committee of the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) for 12 months.

The Manchester committee is one of the largest and longest standing of the 11 such BIBA groups across the UK.

Mr Lloyd-John said his election was an “honour” and came at a pivotal moment for the insurance industry.

Daniel Lloyd-John, chief executive of Broadway Insurance Brokers

He said: “Manchester is the second largest financial services market in the country, with insurance playing a significant role. Being chosen to lead BIBA’s committee in the region is, therefore, a real privilege.

“As we have seen in the decades since BIBA was founded, brokers offer tremendous support to business and private clients alike, helping them understand the importance of managing risk and then providing clear guidance about how best to do so. That is especially critical at the moment as people continue the process of responding to, and moving from the pandemic.”

BIBA was founded in 1977 and represents more than 1,800 regulated firms that collectively employ more than 100,000 staff.

Mr Lloyd-John’s election comes weeks after Altrincham-based Broadway revealed the value of corporate and private assets for which it arranges cover has almost doubled in the past six months to nearly £1bn, despite only opening its doors 18 months ago.

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Time Finance has appointed Laura Mollett to the position of head of broker sales in its asset finance team.

Laura joins the alternative finance provider with more than 14 years of experience. She began her career at Syscap in account and relationship management positions prior to its acquisition by Wesleyan in 2015 where she worked directly with SMEs to understand their funding requirements and package facilities to support their investment and growth plans.

She then moved into the role of affinity and PII broker manager where she managed some of their key strategic relationships and specialist brokers. In her most recent position as a broker relationship manager, she was instrumental in the launch of Wesleyan’s broker proposition and a key driver in the success of the bank’s broker division.

Laura Mollett

With a proven track record behind her, Laura steps up to the new position within Time Finance and takes on responsibility for helping drive its asset finance proposition to the SME broker market. She will manage Time Finance’s national team of broker managers to deliver a market leading service to both brokers and their SME clients.

Laura said: “I’m excited to be joining Time Finance and to be supporting the team in driving their proposition forward. In what continues to be challenging economic conditions, stepping into this new role comes at a vital time and presents a great opportunity to inspire confidence and investment for growth in the UK SME market.”

The announcement follows a number of recent appointments and promotions within Time Finance, including Steve Nichols to director of asset finance earlier this year and Kate Brown to head of marketing, further demonstrating the firm’s commitment to investing in its people as well as delivering a broad solution to UK SMEs.

Steve Nichols said: “Laura is an excellent addition to the business. She brings invaluable experience that will help develop our broker offering as we continue to strengthen our proposition in hard and soft asset by offering quick, sensible decisions and market leading service.”

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Cheshire-based agricultural digital marketing specialist, Hillsgreen, has taken over new office space following the recruitment of four new team members.

The appointment of an account director, two digital marketing executives and a content executive is part of the agency’s rapid expansion plans which have seen it grow from four employees to 10 in 12 months.

In its latest round of recruitment, it has welcomed account director, Cat Woolrich, and digital marketing executive, Sam Hockenhall.

Cat joins from Boxed Red Marketing where she spent the past seven years and has more than a decade of marketing, digital and events experience.

Sam’s role will see him working with Hillsgreen’s head of strategy, Aidie Street, and the wider team on the delivery of PPC and SEO campaigns for clients including the NFU, Elsoms and Cereals Events.

From left: Sophie Needham, Eleri Hughes, Sam Hockenhall, Cat Woolrich

In addition, content executive, Sophie Needham and a new digital marketing executive, Eleri Hughes,have joined Hillsgreen, taking the agency to double figure staff numbers for the first time since it opened in late 2018.

With the agency growing its headcount from four to 10 in under one year, it has also relocated to a new, larger office space at Holly House Estate in Cheshire.

Managing director, Andy Venables, said: “As the team continues to grow, and with a clear need for specialist digital skill in the agricultural sector, Cat, Sam, Eleri and Sophie are bringing expertise and enthusiasm to the agency and we’re delighted to have them on board.”

The majority of Hillsgreen clients are based in the agricultural, agri-tech and rural industries. It’s on a mission to market agriculture, promoting the sector’s products and services to businesses and consumers. It led the national, award-winning Mission4Milk campaign. It also co-organises the industry’s ‘Cultivate’ business conference and hosts a ‘Rural Roundtable’ each month for agricultural businesses.

Andy said: “We know our niche and that means our team can get fully immersed in the sector which allows us to deliver the best campaigns. We’re here to promote agriculture and ensure the sector prospers through better connecting with their customers via digital.”

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North West law firm Napthens has appointed Jonathan Fox as its new non-executive chairman.

An expert in the management and development of professional services, Jonathan will provide guidance, operational support and consultancy to Napthens’ senior leadership team and partners. He will also help drive the business forward in its strategic goals as the firm looks to accelerate growth across the North West.

Jonathan brings more than 30 years of specialist knowledge and experience to Napthens, having led and advised a wide range of professionals, firms and their clients both in the UK and overseas.

Jonathan Fox

Prior to starting his own consultancy firm in 2015, he was elected the managing partner at accountancy firm Saffery Champness. Jonathan also has extensive legal experience having worked as the CEO of the UK’s second largest barristers, St Philips Chambers, the CEO of London-based law firm Collyer-Bristow, and as the head of marketing at DLA Piper.

The news follows a spate of senior additions to Napthens in the first half of the year, including CEO, Alexandra Hatchman, and head of Liverpool, Kieran Donovan.

Alexandra Hatchman, CEO at Napthens, said: “Jonathan is an exceptional addition to the leadership team at Napthens. His pedigree in professional services and in the law speaks for itself. This, combined with Jonathan’s innate understanding of people and clients, is a rare combination. I am genuinely delighted he has chosen to join us and very much look forward to working closely with him.”

Jonathan Fox said: “Alex is a passionate leader with a clear vision, so when she offered me the opportunity to play a role at Napthens it was an easy decision. The firm has been one to watch in recent years and is known across the North West for its relationship-driven approach. I look forward to playing a part in the firm’s next chapter and working closely with its leadership team to deliver on its growth ambitions.”

Napthens advises businesses and individuals, with offices across the North West, including Liverpool, Southport, Preston, Blackburn, Cumbria and the Fylde Coast.

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