Christopher Ankers Email & Phone Number

Kington, Gb

Craven Arms, England, United Kingdom

Craven Arms, England, United Kingdom

 Part of the senior management team leading >80 colleagues across the site. Directly responsible for the performance of 35 colleagues including Department Managers and Supervisors. Successfully increased profitability across the Kitchen, Bathroom, Tiles & Hard Flooring, Conservatory and Windows & Doors departments from loss making to profitable in 24 months (£6M turnover). Achieved through reshaping teams, reducing order errors & remedial costs using a stringent compliance process, close FTE control and driving top line sales. Following 2020 restructure my departments grew to include Carpets, DIY & Decorating, a Building Yard and Garden Centre. I managed a £7.6M business and turned this into £8.25M in FY 2021-22 (8% growth). Achieved by co-ordinating a departmental cross training programme creating a more fluid and engaged workforce. Planned & executed store refurbishment projects including new kitchen & bathroom showrooms, a complete garden centre overhaul, resurfacing & remodelling the builder’s yard and a full internal lighting conversion to LED. Repurposed and transformed areas of the site, creating new reasons to visit and generating increased capacity. Examples include turning an unused corner of the garden centre into a children’s playground with additional seating and as an extension to the restaurant.

 Project managed ~400 bathroom installations annually with targeted completion in 10 working days. Achieved 80% completion rate with a gross value >£2M. Audited installations for compliance, H&S, standards of workmanship and customer satisfaction across 20+ installation teams. Responsible for cost control and remedial spending.  Responsible for installer recruitment and relationships with 12 stores in the region. Visited stores weekly providing feedback and a clear line of communication. Handled complaints, including site visits to assess issues. Proposed resolutions, set timelines, followed through until completion, negotiating settlements where applicable.

 Increased turnover from £400K to £600K in my first year through target setting, coaching, improving showroom standards and leading by example.  Designed an order checking document which rolled out across 11 stores in the region. This improved order accuracy and profitability across all sites. Promoted brand awareness using own initiative through local advertising channels and liaising with local businesses. Negotiated monthly leaflet drops with a newspaper and new retail park signage with other businesses on the estate. Also agreed with local supermarket to situate branded company car on their land over key trading periods for maximum impact.

Hereford, United Kingdom

 Selected to be the senior of 5 Assistant Sales Managers after displaying standout leadership and problem-solving skills. Regularly took control in the absence of the Store Manager. Achieved and surpassed company expectations across sales and KPI’s. Personal sales in excess of £500K with a store turnover of ~£2M. Heavily involved in the successful launch of the Hereford store. Designed and implemented merchandising strategy tailored to store size and layout whilst aligning with company vision. Promoted the theory that the minor detail makes the major difference.

Hereford, United Kingdom

 Broke the peak trading record in £5M turnover store through motivating, target setting, coaching and improving showroom standards. Successfully implemented a Learning Management System providing colleagues with the product knowledge to achieve expert status in the Hereford store. This favourable outcome led to an assignment managing this KPI for the South West area.  Recognised with award after inspiring team to reach highest sales of Sky television contracts in a 3-month period. Established strong relationship with local recruitment agency offering work experience to young unemployed people. In the first 8 months 4 young persons joined the business; 2 were employed after successful trials and 2 went on to secure jobs elsewhere.

Swansea, United Kingdom

Hereford, United Kingdom

 Achieved ‘Expert’ sales advisor status through continued product training. Completed Comet’s Next Generation Sales Manager training programme (2009-2010). Awarded first Sales Manager role on completion.