Meet The Team
It sounds simple, but all too often we find that it’s the simplest of things that set us far apart from our competition, we concentrate on getting the absolute basics of our business right.
It’s something our team are all passionate about and all do well, in fact it’s one of the core things we look for when we recruit. A desire to get things right and the confidence to deliver that to our customers with absolute freedom.
Ultimately our success as a business is down to the team that makes it up. Our team is a beautiful blend of people, all experts in their respective fields, working seamlessly together for a common goal, quite simply to provide high end bathroom products to complete your project with a minimum friction possible.
We believe in giving people the freedom to make decisions, without restriction and with a flat management structure we can enable this. No one wants to hear “Sorry, computer says no”, we all know that red tape and bureaucracy is what stifles common sense in being able to solve simple problems.
So let’s meet the team :-
Gary Forster – Managing Director and Founder
After an early career in Software Development and E-Commerce, a chance opportunity in 2007 led to the creation of UK Bathroomstore. Teaming up with the area’s leading showroom he quickly realized the opportunity that the bathroom industry presented.
After laying the foundations over the initial years he has managed to build a team of experts, all more adept in their respective skillset than himself and is now able to proudly lead them in his vision for the future.
Outside of the business he is a huge fan of Speedway and follows his home team of Oxford Cheetahs whenever he can and is fascinated to watch his two daughters who are following careers on stage and in the Physics lab!
Aaron Parker – Sales Manager
Aaron entered the plumbing world straight from school going straight into the warehouse. His enthusiasm and professionalism helped him quickly work his way through the ranks and over the next 20 years he has held a series of management roles in both a merchant and showroom capacity. He was perfectly placed therefore to join us in 2021 as Sales Manager. His design skills have been revered in the showrooms he has worked at and he has been a great asset to the team. The breadth of his knowledge and ability to think on his feet are some of his greatest assets and he is a great problem solver. He once even had to deal with one of his customers’ children going to the loo in a showroom display!
He has two children who he loves to spend time with, and watch grow and you will often find him at Morecambe FC where he has been a season ticket holder since he was just 7 years old.
Kerry Hartley – Trade Sales and Customer Service
We are extremely lucky to have Kerry on our Team, she started over 35 years ago in a plumbers merchants and during that time has worked in most capacities in the industry, from trainee to branch manager, her husband also works at our showroom so it’s obviously a family passion!
We don’t think there is anyone in the industry with a more in-depth knowledge than Kerry has amassed during her career.
She is often requested specifically by our trade customers, which is testament to her skillset, feel free to ask for her directly, we are sure you will be impressed.
Outside of the office you will often find Kerry up a mountain in the Lake District, looking for some peace and quiet away from the hustle and bustle of the office.
Jon Agar – Sales Executive and Customer Service
Jons customer service background began back in 2004 where he gained a solid foundation which he has built on since joining the bathroom industry in 2014. During that time, he has amassed a wealth of knowledge and is very much a brand expert here.
He has a real passion for making sure that every customer always has a positive experience, and our reviews reflect that attention to detail.
When not at work you can find Jon at the Wigan Warriors ground supporting his favorite rugby league team or coaching his sons football team which he has managed for a number of years.
Whilst the members above are the team that are public facing, there is of course a wider team that I cannot write this page without mentioning. They each make up a piece of the puzzle that makes UK Bathroomstore what it is. These are the people that curate the products you can see online, help promote the business to the public, manage our social media, make sure that everyone is paid on time etc etc.
As a team we often spend time together out of the office and as part of that undertake Charity challenges, to date we have completed the Yorkshire 3 peaks challenge, the Lakes 10in10 (10 peaks in 10 hours), several half marathons, truck pulls and various other exciting escapades!
We always welcome support from suppliers or indeed anyone that wants to cheer us on and more importantly donate to the charities we are supporting so be sure to follow us on social media to keep up with our latest challenges and achievements.
