Richard Close

Richard Close (born 6 December 1958) is a UK business leader, currently serving as chief executive officer of Briggs Equipment UK Ltd, a leading materials handling service provider and sole distributor of Yale Materials Handling products in Great Britain.
Close joined Briggs Equipment UK as Chief Executive Officer in October 2006 when Sammons Enterprises acquired the business. During the last five years, he built a profitable business model as he transitioned Briggs from a sales equipment business into a mobile contract maintenance business. Richard is passionate about employee engagement, a key factor in the company's profitability.
A specialist in business transformation, international distribution and retail strategies Close has overseen several high profile business turnarounds in his 30 year career.
Career history
A qualified accountant with 3 decades of experience in manufacturing, distribution and leasing within the automotive and capital equipment industries, Close has specialised in moving companies from unprofitable operations into profitable, cash generating, sustainable businesses.
Prior to joining Briggs in 2006, he served as Vice President and Managing Director EMEA at Nacco Materials Handling. He has also been both Franchise Director of the Lex Retail Group, and Managing Director of Lex Distribution. Previous to this his was Operations and Finance Director at Hyundai Car UK.
Awards
In May 2012 he was named as the winner of the West Midlands ‘Director of the Year in a Large Company' by the Institute of Directors (IOD).

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