People: Hawkswell Kilvington; Wrigleys Solicitors; UNTHA UK; and more

Hawkswell Kilvington, a niche firm of specialist construction and engineering solicitors, says Matthew Leonard has been promoted to legal director.

He joined the Wakefield-based firm five years ago and is an integral part of the contentious department. His work includes dealing with all forms of dispute resolution, including litigation, arbitration and adjudication.

Leonard said: “The firm has gone from strength to strength since I joined and I’m proud to be part of an ambitious, forward thinking and supportive team.

“I’m very much looking forward to developing new relationships, continuing to provide clients with the commercially focused support they need, and assisting the firm as it continues to grow.

Daniel Silberstein, partner at Hawkswell Kilvington, added: “Matthew is an outstanding lawyer and a key figure in the Hawkswell Kilvington team. We are thrilled he has been promoted to legal director, which is thoroughly deserved.”

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Holly Marshall has been offered a permanent role with Wrigleys Solicitors following her successful training contract.

She has been welcomed to the firm’s Probate, Trusts and Estate Planning team in Leeds. Marshall has been with the firm for four years, first as a paralegal in Sheffield, and then since December 2020 as a trainee solicitor.

She said: “At every stage, I have been surrounded by people who have encouraged and supported me in all areas of my personal and professional development.

“The complexity and quality of the work that the firm does has given me such a solid foundation during my training contract; the level of experience I already have going into qualification is much more developed that I could have imagined 18 months ago’.

Marie-Louise Hamilton, joint head of probate, trusts & estate planning in the Leeds Office and managing partner of Wrigleys, said: ‘Throughout her training contract Holly has been able to demonstrate her desire to learn and her strong technical ability to work with our wide ranging and valued clients.

“We look forward to helping Holly develop and realise her potential as a private client solicitor.”

Sue Greaves, training principal at Wrigleys, added: It’s been a really challenging time to undertake a training contract, but Holly has taken it in her stride and excelled throughout, which is a credit to her and also to her supervisors and everyone who has worked with her.”

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Industrial shredding specialist, UNTHA UK, has appointed two new employees to further bolster its sales and engineering divisions.

The recruitment news follows the confirmation earlier this year that the firm had promoted three of its long-standing staff members and is preparing for 30% growth in 2022 which would make it a £17m-turnover business.

With a 30-year tenure within the retail and corporate sales industry, and experience working for brands such as Halliwell Jones Group BMW/MINI, former business development manager Ian Harvey now takes on the position of sales manager.

His breadth of experience will be crucial in helping the firm achieve its ambitious growth target. He will be responsible for shaping the sales strategy and building a robust pipeline of sales leads for UNTHA’s recycling machines.

Harvey is joined by service engineer Darren McDonnell, who has built his career in repairing commercial vehicles and recycling plant machinery.

A key technical point of contact for the organisation’s 1,000-strong UK customer base, he will now form a crucial part of UNTHA UK’s aftersales department and will be responsible for all shredder maintenance and service work, to ensure optimal performance.

Managing director, Marcus Brew, said: “We’re incredibly excited to bring these dynamic and experienced individuals to our team.

“We rely on having the very best talent at the heart of our operation to not only maintain our reputation but to further exceed expectations.

“By strengthening both our service and sales teams, we’re not only demonstrating the commitment we have to our existing customers but our prospective ones too,”

McDonnell said: “UNTHA is an internationally recognised name within the waste and recycling sector and is an extremely fast-growing business. I was drawn to the role for these very reasons, and I’m looking forward to honing my skillset with such an established company.”

Harvey added: “It’s an exciting time to be joining the organisation, and I’m looking forward to bringing my three decades of experience to the table – supporting the long-term development of new business opportunities and customer retention.”

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Online running shoes, running clothing and outdoor gear retailer SportsShoes.com has hired a former chief technology officer of online fashion retailer In The Style.

Jon Cleaver has joined the £92m turnover Shipley-headquartered business as CTO to enhance SportsShoes.com’s online customer and athlete experience.

He has also previously held CTO positions at furniture retailer Sofology and, most recently, European sneaker and streetwear marketplace KLEKT.

Alongside his professional career, Cleaver is also an athlete who has represented Lancashire at cross county running events.

He said: “As an active athlete, and someone who has bought products from SportsShoes.com dozens of times, I have an insight into the wants and needs of our customers.

“I am working with the company’s highly talented team of inhouse developers and marketers to not just make our website best-in-class, but to also grow our customer and athlete communities.”

Last November, the company appointed former CEO of Asics EMEA, Alistair Cameron, as non-executive director to help drive further national and international growth.

Managing director, Brett Bannister, said: “Jon and I have talked at length about his plans to make SportsShoes.com a best-in-class customer experience, as well as the most technology-led retailer in running and performance sports, and we have already started to implement some of his ideas.

“We want to continually improve as a business while helping people enhance their lives and health through running and fitness.

“The work of Jon and his team will help us deliver those objectives nationally and internationally by further connecting with our customers, securing new brand partners and providing innovative new services.”