Twisted USA-Group, a division of North Yorkshire-based Twisted Automotive, is celebrating a staggering $7million in sales in its first 12 months of trading.
The US arm of the leading global Land Rover Defender® modification specialist officially started trading in April 2020, with a limited run of 200 Twisted NA-V8 vehicles.
The business is headed up by Yorkshire entrepreneur Tom Maxwell, who secured a seven-figure investment to operate the Twisted USA, LLC Group that owns and operates Twisted North America, Twisted Middle East and Twisted EV, under licence from the company’s founder Charles Fawcett.
To support Twisted USA-Group’s growth plans it has strengthened its senior leadership team with the appointment of six new recruits.
Paul Kilvington has been appointed head of bespoke design, Darren Jones joins as head of technical design, Oliver Smith has taken on the role of sales manager and Martin O’Gorman will join the group as head of procurement. Louis Fernandez will take on the position of chief financial officer while Matt Macchi has been appointed retail manager in Austin.
In his previous role, Paul launched Range Rover in North America and conceived the creative concept behind the ‘Best 4x4xFar’ campaign. Working with each client individually, he will be responsible for exploring the aesthetic design of every Twisted USA-Group build.
Darren is a seasoned technical designer and engineer, having helped design the NIO EP9 electric sports car that captured two Grand Prix d’Horlogerie awards and having completed bespoke commissions for Spyker and Morgan. His role at Twisted USA-Group will involve working on projects with ultra-lightweight and ultra-luxurious elements.
Following a career in a FTSE 100 FMCG business, Oliver has turned his passion for classic cars into a consultancy, working with some of the biggest marques and models over the past 15 years.
Martin held senior procurement positions at Jaguar Land Rover before moving to Aston Martin to head up programme purchasing teams.
Louis has more than 20 years’ experience of corporate finance experience across several industries ranging from energy, engineering and construction and now the automotive space. He has worked for numerous Fortune 500 companies including BP, Fluor and BHP Billiton.
The five appointments bring more than 70 years’ experience to the Twisted USA team, Collectively, the new recruits will be responsible for driving Twisted USA-Group’s growth, profitability and design across the USA, Middle East and in the electric vehicle industry.
To support the group’s ambition of being the go-to Defender® modification specialist in the US, it recently opened a new 5,000 sq ft showroom in Austin, Texas, which is available for private bookings until Covid restrictions lift.
Maxwell said results had exceeded expectations:
“The past year has been a difficult time for many businesses. Despite all the issues created by the pandemic, the Twisted-USA Group has faced these challenges head on and secured incredible results, hitting $7 million in sales in the first year.
“I am delighted to welcome Paul, Darren, Oliver, Martin, Louis and Matt to the team. Their automotive expertise will add real value to our customers and strengthen our position in the market as we continue our growth trajectory. They are committed to delivering an end product that exceeds our customers’ expectations while building on the international following of the Twisted brand and increasing its sales around the globe.”
