JMA part of the worldwide leader in the key duplication market, the Altuna Group, has announced the appointment of Mark Gentry as managing director of its UK subsidiary SKS Limited.

JMA (Altuna Group) acquired the majority shareholding in SKS Limited at the beginning of 2017, with a view to further developing and consolidating its position in the UK Key and Lock market. The group said the deal will enable JMA and SKS to offer their customers a greater choice and easier access to product from the largest key blank manufacturer in Europe.

SKS was founded in 1974 by Jack Simonds as Simonds Key Services. Under the direction of Trevor Brett for 36 years, until he left in 2017, the company has grown from a retail business in Harrow, north London to become one of the UK’s largest wholesale distributors to the industry; now based in Berkhamsted.

With previous roles including managing director of Marabu UK Ltd and sales director of Adboards Ltd, Mark Gentry brings wide and varied SME experience with him to his new position.

He was delighted to confirm his appointment, and commented: “We have a great Team at SKS and, now under the Altuna Group ownership, [we] have the tools to make a real difference with our growth strategy – we want to be recognised for great product, competitively-priced, technically-supported and delivered on time. With JMA there is no reason why SKS should not see solid growth and development.”