Meet the BA Bush Agricultural ‘Super Team’ with nearly 400 years combined experience!

The BA Bush team has always comprised of tyre experts, however with recent growth and expansion the company has seen this wealth of knowledge grow even further. Building on its strong family history in the tyre industry and the addition of new agricultural tyre brand Ascenso, BA Bush now has an agricultural ‘super team’ made up of a group of agricultural tyre industry experts.

Gregg Foster recently became the new Ascenso Field and Sales Manager which will perfectly complement the existing team and help drive the brand forward in the UK market. With a range of different backgrounds and specialties, the BA Bush team really is unsurpassed, so let’s meet the team!

Ascenso Sales Team:

Matt Smith title – Agri Wholesale Sales & Operations Manager

I entered the tyre trade in 1998 as a trainee tyre technician and continued to work in the industry until around 2007 when I left the industry for 18 months for a more sales-oriented role. I returned to Bush and agricultural tyres sales in 2009 and stayed until the present, where I have gained experience in retail, wholesale, and Original Equipment sales.

For the past four to five years I have been expanding the agricultural and commercial wholesale nationwide sales for the BAB Distribution arm of the Bush group. Now, with the introduction of Ascenso into our tyre portfolio we are looking forward to progressing this further still and becoming one of the UK’s leading independent agricultural tyre wholesalers.

My key areas of expertise are in agricultural tyres, sales, and product sourcing. I have vast technical knowledge in tractor conversions, bulk sales and commercial sales.

Gregg Foster – Ascenso Field and Sales Manager

Having previously worked at HSBC Bank as a Commercial Relationship Manager, I started with Abbey Tyre Co. in 2010 as Service and Sales Manager.  I have been involved in all aspects of the business from Sales, Accounts, and Customer relationship management.

I have gained experience in Commercial and Agricultural tyres, enabling me to be able to provide technical help and assistance to customers whilst also selling to their needs.

Being a part of BA Bush since 2019 I have become more involved in promoting and selling agricultural tyres including our Ascenso range. I have been successful in selling and promoting Ascenso tyres, increasing the brand awareness and sales in line with our exciting growth plans. Now in my new role as Ascenso Field and Sales Manager I am looking to grow and develop the Ascenso brand further. I will be working closely with the directors and members of the Ascenso sales team to support overall sales growth as well as identifying and proposing product development needs to the Sales, Marketing and Technical teams in India.

Colin Creasey – Agri Wholesale Sales & Purchasing Manager

Having started my career working for Fossitt & Thorne back in 1978, I have worked in the tyre industry ever since. I was in my most recent previous role within the tyre trade for 21 years and before that I ran my own tyre company, Colin Creasey Tyres, for 16 years supplying car, truck and agricultural tyres.

I specialise in the agricultural tyre sector, from farm implement tyres to lawn and turf tyres. At BA Bush, I have joined the growing BAB Distribution trade team at the new 70,000 square foot Boston Warehouse to help bolster the BAB agricultural tyre trade, as well as the Original Equipment (OE) department, helping with speciality OE2.

I also work closely with the purchasing team to find new brands and products to further expand BA Bush & Son’s current offering.

With BA Bush having announced last year that they are the exclusive UK distributers of Ascenso tyres, I also now work closely with Matt Smith to help him with the Ascenso Tyres UK growth project.

Original Equipment (OE) Sales Team:

Mark Nichols – OE2 and Dealer, Wheel and Tyre Logistics Coordinator

I have worked in the agricultural machinery business for over 40 years, the last 28 years specialising in agricultural wheels and tyres. My role at BA Bush involves processing sales orders, logging and tracking customer’s orders from receipt to despatch as well as sourcing and purchasing agricultural wheels and tyres. Having worked in the agricultural wheel manufacturing industry for nearly 30 years, I have gained extensive technical knowledge of agricultural wheels and tyres.

Agricultural Sales Team:

Pete Kemp – Business Development Manager

I have spent 51 years in tyre industry after starting as tyre fitter. I then became a commercial tyre fitter and have also been a depot manager. I have also previously worked for Bandag Retreads before going onto work in the sales side of the tyre industry with BA Bush.

I look after farm and truck accounts making sure all is running smoothly and making sure the customers receive excellent service. I also regularly visit the account customers within my area.

Ben Gray – Support Manager – South

I have worked in the tyre industry since I left school and have 27 years’ experience working in tyres having previously worked for ATS, Stapletons and Mitas. At BA Bush I am a support manager for the Southern branches and specialise in working with agricultural customers and farming groups. I am trained and have a vast knowledge in agricultural and earthmover tyres and have a qualification from City & Guilds in car, truck and van as well as being forklift trained.

Leon Woolliss – Business Development Manager

I have worked in the tyre industry for 32 years and have a vast experience in car, commercial and agricultural tyres. In my time at BA Bush, I have been the Manager at the Beverley, Louth and Grimsby branches and currently work in truck and tractor tyre sales and have done for the last 8 years.

In my day-to-day role, I visit customer sites, advising and quoting on row crop and flotation tyres, work with Tractor and Truck dealerships on conversions and replacement wheels as well as organising customer stocking levels at depot levels. I am passionate about making sure we are maintaining customer satisfaction.

Warehouse Team:

Ben Cahill – Channel 2 Agricultural Warehouse Manager

I started with the BA Bush in May 1995 as a trainee tyre technician, working at depot level on cars, vans and 4×4’s. My role included fitting tyres, brakes, exhausts, suspension and servicing.

I then went onto outside agricultural and commercial tyre fitting, which I did for 7 years until 2003. In 2004 I re-joined Bush as a service manager at the Skegness depot, and in 2006 I was made manager at the Spilsby depot where I remained until 2020. I then moved onto the agricultural sales team working from the Barton warehouse with Matt Smith, here I dealt with customers around UK and local customers. In 2021 I moved onto the OE2 side of the business, helping complete orders, the fitting of agricultural and commercial tyres and dispatching and delivering tyres around UK. I am now the agricultural manager at the Boston warehouse, in charge of the stock and taking in delivery of containers.

Dave Bogg – OE2 Distributor & Quality Control

I started with BA Bush in March 1977, 45 wonderful years ago! I have worked in a number of areas, having started out doing agricultural and commercial outside fitting as well as working in the depots.

I have worked on cars doing tyres, brakes, exhausts, suspension, and service work. I have also fitted tyres to tractors, trailers, combines even planes! I have also been a Service Manager and Manager at depot level for 20 years.

I now work on the OE2 agricultural team, fitting and delivering orders across the UK. I enjoy working alongside the fantastic team in Boston fitting original equipment tyres as well as delivering across the UK.

Chris Bogg – Oe2 Team Agri Tyre Technician

I started at BA Bush in 2010 as an agricultural and commercial outside fitter. I was based in Boston but covered a large area, fitting tyres on a range of different vehicles and machines.

I briefly left Bush in 2016 but returned to the job I loved in 2019! I then joined the OE2 team in September 2021, where we are always busy fitting new tyres and suppling the OE industry across the UK.

I have worked mainly in the agricultural and commercial tyre fitting side of the industry so working in the OE2 department suits me, I enjoy my work and feel a part of the excellent team at the Boston warehouse.

Matt Turvey – OE2 Team, Agri Tyre Technician – Warehouse and Delivery

I started in the tyre industry in 2001 working in workshops on cars, vans and 4×4’s. I can do various repairs needed on cars. I then moved onto agricultural and commercial tyre fitting in 2006 and have worked on most agricultural vehicles and machinery. I joined Bush Tyres in 2015 at the Horncastle branch where David Bogg was doing the OE fitting, so I learnt a lot helping Dave on that side of the business.

I have now joined the OE2 and wholesale agricultural department at the Boston warehouse, where I enjoy OE agricultural tyre fitting and delivering orders. I would say I am an allrounder as I have worked on all sides of the tyre trade, so have a vast knowledge of all aspects of the industry.

Office Team:

Tom Bush – Director

I started working at BABush in 2003 during the school holidays and weekends, initially within BAB Distribution, helping with stock and van loading. I later, in between my studies, worked as a fitter at the Horncastle, Spilsby, Skegness, Louth, Boston, Scunthorpe, Hull and Beverley branches learning all aspects of the tyre trade.

After school I went to University of Warwick, where I earned my degree, before coming back to BABush Tyres. I started off within the buying role, concentrating on the Chinese imports and car tyre buying, before developing into commercial and agricultural buying and pricing. Throughout my time within BABush I have had experience within all aspects of the company from Purchase Ledger, Accountancy, OE2 wheel and tyre assemblies, sales management etc.

I have always found my passion and attention to be within the Agricultural sphere – a segment that we have expanded hugely over the course of the last 10 years. I honestly believe no one in the industry has the drive and technical ability within their agricultural tyre sales, as we do. I feel we have a team of people akin to making your fantasy football team – the dream team of agricultural knowledge and experience that will continue to push forward the BABush family’s lofty strategic goals.

Our new pending acquisitions and growth plans for agricultural tyre sales (as well as wheels, TBR, Industrial and PCR channels) are very aggressive and we have a bullish turnover goal over the next five years, something we are confident on achieving.

Adam Michaels – Bush Purchasing Manager & Endyke Tyres Director

I have worked in the tyre industry since 2004, originally working under my father running Endyke Tyres‘ purchasing and logistics. In 2012 when my father retired, I made the step up to become Director to run the site alongside new partners Bush Tyres. In 2019/2020 to improve synergies within the Bush Group of companies, I began working from Bush HQ in Horncastle alongside Tom, Ben and Nigel. Now in 2022, I am fully integrated into the Bush senior management team.

My industry history and areas of expertise are embedded in purchasing. Recognising these as my strengths my role is centred mainly around our purchases from abroad and the associated logistics involved. This has been particularly prevalent with beginning our Ascenso journey, working with our shipping and customs partners to ensure seamless arrival of this fantastic product to our warehouses. In addition, as part of my management role I liaise with our pricing and selling teams to ensure the product is competitively priced to our valued customers.

Ellie Major – Marketing Coordinator

Having started with BA Bush & Son in October 2020 and coming from a web and marketing background the tyre industry was new to me, however I have been fortunate to work alongside a great team of industry experts who have helped me build my tyre knowledge over the last year and a half.

I work with each sector of the company from car and retail to agricultural and trade and I am based in the Horncastle Head Office however visit the branches and warehouses when I can. I look after our social media accounts across Bush Tyres, BAB Distribution and Ascenso Tyres UK as well as managing the advertising and general marketing activities we do across car, truck and agricultural tyres. With a background in design, I also create flyers and marketing materials to be used across the company. I work closely with all the major tyre manufacturers to create and run retail promotions for both car and agri.

This year we are planning to exhibit at more shows, with our new exhibition trailer we recently attended top agricultural show LAMMA where we showcased the new Ascenso brand. We also plan to attend local country shows to promote our agricultural and retail services.

Since BA Bush became exclusive distributers of Ascenso tyres in the UK, growing the awareness of the brand has been a big focus over the last year, spreading brand awareness across the UK and working with the incredibly knowledgeable agricultural team to promote the benefits and range of Ascenso Tyres.

Greg Hammill – Strategy & Insight Analyst

I joined BA Bush in 2021 after 19 years at Grouptyre UK Ltd covering roles in Purchasing and Pricing including Far East brands and supplier negotiations. In my current role at Bush, I support the purchasing and senior management teams with analysis, reporting and system improvements, whilst maintaining car tyre pricing and stock files for several premium and mid-range brands. I am a member of the BAB SMT and have helped develop the new pricing structure for wholesale customers. Since joining Bush, I have enjoyed gaining more experience and having exposure to the Truck and Agri sectors as well as the new Ascenso brand, I am very impressed and pleased with the progress Ascenso is making in the UK market.

As you can see, the range of technical knowledge the BA Bush team offers is unbeatable and ever growing. From tractor to truck, tyres and wheels, the team can advise on the best for your vehicle, machinery, terrain, and general needs – and are always happy to help whether that is over the phone or in person on a visit to your farm or business.

Get in touch with the team on 01205 743163 or click here to send an email.