Highly experienced agricultural machinery industry professional joins Claydon as Exports Manager

Agricultural machinery manufacturer Claydon, which sells products that are designed and manufactured at its UK factory to farmers in more than 30 countries across six continents, has appointed an Exports Manager to head the company’s Export Sales Team, which reports to Commercial Director Spencer Claydon.

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With a pioneering attitude to developing new markets, an ability to identify opportunities for new products, an excellent understanding of agriculture, including soils, cropping and agronomic practices throughout the world, plus hands-on experience of demonstrating products and developing dealer networks, Simon Revell is ideally qualified for the position.

“I have known Jeff Claydon for many years and watched his company grow progressively, both in the UK and overseas,” Simon states. “During that time, it has earned an excellent reputation with customers, distributors and dealers for the quality of its products and the integrity with which it does business. I am delighted to be working for this progressive UK-based family business, which has a very knowledgeable, highly-motivated team who provide farmers with agronomically and financially sustainable crop establishment solutions, as well as supplying dealers with excellent products to develop and strengthen their businesses.”

Spencer Claydon states: “We are delighted to have Simon on-board. His immense practical experience and expertise of working with farmers, dealers and distributors will be a real asset to our business in further developing existing markets and opening up new opportunities.”

Born into a long-established farming family in the east of England, Simon was fascinated by the engineering side of the industry and after leaving school in June 1976 joined Eastern Counties Farmers, a farmers’ cooperative based in Ipswich, as an Agricultural Engineer Apprentice. There, he had the opportunity to study the subject at Otley Agricultural College, worked on Deutz and Leyland tractors and eventually specialised in the service and repair of Grimme potato harvesters. After taking on the role of Office Administrator, Simon was promoted to Sales Representative for South Suffolk and North Essex, selling Deutz and Leyland tractors, Claas combines and Coventry Climax fork trucks.

In 1988, Simon joined Colchester Tractors as a Sales Representative, where his responsibilities included demonstrating tractors and combines, selling Ford and New Holland equipment, together with products from other companies such as JCB and Vicon in South Suffolk and North Essex.

After a year with Colchester Tractors, Simon was approached by Ipswich-based Vicon UK and became Territory Sales Manager, Eastern England, a role in which he was responsible for demonstrating the company’s products, together with all sales and marketing activities within the territory. Simon’s success in that position subsequently led him to his appointment as the country lead for the Vicon Compact Big Square Baler launch in the UK.

In 1994, Simon was approached by Simba for the role of Territory Sales Manager, East Anglia and South-East England, where he became heavily involved in dealer and product development, including trialling and testing of direct and one-pass cultivation/seeding systems. A member of the steering committee which developed ECOtillage, Simon was promoted to Export Sales Manager in 2006 and two years later joined the Simba Board as Export Sales Director, a role in which he established the brand in many European countries and further afield. Following the company’s acquisition by Great Plains, Simon was given additional responsibilities for developing sales of UK products in overseas markets. He left the business in December 2017 and joined Claydon in January 2018.