Crown Paints has appointed Joe Devitt, formerly the company's retail director, to the newly created role of group commercial director.
Mr Devitt has now assumed additional, broader responsibilities for formulating and implementing commercial strategy across the Lancashire-based group and will focus on top-line growth and margin generation for the business.
Since 1989, he has held successively senior sales and marketing roles within the company, gaining a deep understanding of both the trade and consumer sectors of the market.
Mr Devitt's new appointment marks a further strengthening of the Crown Paints board which, in the past 12 months has seen the appointment of four new directors from within and outside the business.
Crown's CEO Brian Davidson said: "Joe has the depth and breadth of experience required to take a holistic view of the business and to work with the other members of our new forward-looking senior management team to design and implement a new distribution strategy across our retail, trade and export markets. He is supremely well qualified to take on this vital role in the business."