HSS CEO to step down as business shifts strategy

Image: HSS Hire Group

UK-based rental company HSS Hire has announced that its Group CEO Steve Ashmore is to step down from the role at the end of the month as part of a new strategy.

Ashmore, who has held the role since joining the company in 2017, will become executive chairman for ProService and will remain on the PLC Board as an executive director.

IRN was told that the company will not look to fill the role of Group CEO.

The news comes following the creation of two separate divisions in 2022: HSS Operations for services, operational efficiency and safety, and ProService, its digital marketplace.

Ashmore said the strategy has “proved successful, with each business making material progress in recent years” and the two will now be fully separated as part of the next phase of its strategy.

As part of that strategy, the Manchester-headquartered company has named Jon Overman as CEO of its Operations division and Tom Shorten as CEO of its ProService division respectively.

Meanwhile, Alan Peterson OBE will become non-executive chairman of Operations and HSS Ireland and will retain his role as non-executive chair of the PLC Board.

Amanda Burton, independent non-executive director, is also set to step down after nine years with the company. 

The company said it expects there to be a period of transition over the next 6 to 12 months as it implements change across the Group.

As such, it has established a trading agreement for Operations to provide services to ProService and maintain customer service levels during a period of transition. 

A temporary services agreement to maintain continuity in back-office function has also been implemented.

Ashmore said, “The Directors believe that the ProService and Operations businesses have leading offerings independently of one another and are well positioned to take advantage of a fragmented market and to further capitalise on increasingly complex customer and supplier requirements.

“However, as both ProService and Operations continue to grow, the Board believes that each business, while complementary, have different growth strategies and strategic priorities.”

Elsewhere, in its financial results for the first half of 2024 the company revealed a 3.2% increase in Group revenues to £170.8 million.

It also reported a 3.4% growth in revenues for its ProService division to £156.8 million. To date the division has over 2,200 buyers transacted on the platform. It said its medium term goal is to increase that to 7,000.

It said the 8.7% decrease to £49.3 million of Operations was due to “softness from certain markets such as housing, RMI (repairs, maintenance and improvements) and fit-out and weak seasonal performance.”

Its merchant network for the division expanded to 104 locations, with the medium term target to reach over 150 trading locations.