ROBERT Brown, managing director of Molson Compact Equipment and an executive board member of Molson Group, has retired.
He stood down at the end of July in a planned departure, saying, “My retirement had been planned for some time following the culmination of many factors, not least the birth of my first grandson and enjoying more time back in Cornwall where I was born and raised.
“From humble beginnings, when I started my career operating a drilling rig for a contractor at the China Clay Pits in St Austell, I am very fortunate to have worked in a wide range of businesses in the construction sector that has seen me travel the world and work with some great people.”
After periods working in America for Panther Hydraulic Breakers, where he became a company director at the age of 27 and was promoted to the position of vice president, Robert returned to England when his first child was on the way and joined Brown Lenox & Co Ltd, a subsidiary of Powerscreen, to run its UK sales team before eventually taking over the European territory for them.
“Following the acquisition of Benford by Powerscreen in 1994, I was promoted to become MD for Benford at the tender age of 34,” Robert added. “This allowed me to build on previous experience of shaping a light equipment business and it was this role that eventually lead me to work for Ammann. From which saw the formation of A&Y Group in 2013 with which we purchased the UK distribution rights of Ammann and Yanmar products throughout the UK.
“My time with Molson has been as fast paced and eventful as you would expect for anyone that has seen their impressive growth over recent years. Although we traded as A&Y Group from 2013-2018 before being re-branded as Molson Compact Equipment, the unrivalled growth has only been achieved by a continuous desire to improve both as a business and how we serve our customers. As a member of the Molson Group executive board of directors, I am immensely proud of the milestones we have achieved.”
Molson paid tribute to Robert Brown in a statement which read, “Robert has been a fantastic servant to the construction equipment industry over many years and will certainly be missed as he steps back to enjoy his well-deserved retirement, with our gratitude for all his hard work. I am sure Robert will deservedly look back with pride on the many successes that he has achieved. He leaves the business on a clear upward trajectory, with new dealerships on the horizon and in the midst of an interesting time in the construction industry as we bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic. I know that the team we have are more than capable of continuing to improve the service our customers receive from Molson Compact Equipment, as Robert has strived to do throughout his career.”
