Maxime Bessiere is Seko Logistics' new chief commercial officer for EMEA

Seko Logistics has appointed former Kerry Logistics executive Maxime Bessiere (above) as its new chief commercial officer, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

He is set to replace one of four the founders of Seko’s UK division, David Emerson, who is scheduled to step down on 31 December.

Seko says Mr Bessiere will be responsible for “driving sales growth, vertical market development, account management, solution design, implementation, corporate marketing communications, strategic tender pricing, sustainability and commercial operations in the EMEA region, including the UK and Ireland”.

He joins Seko after nearly five years at Kerry Logistics, where he served a dual role as commercial director of EMEA and cluster MD of Sweden, Poland, Belgium, Czech Republic and South Africa.

Prior to joining Kerry Logistics, he spent 11 years at Geodis in the Asia-Pacific region in a series of positions, the last being as sales and marketing director for China and Hong Kong.

“The global leadership team is thrilled to welcome such a highly recognised leader like Maxime, who brings extensive leadership experience in traditional freight forwarding, contract logistics and e-commerce in EMEA to our team,” said Simon Pinto, Seko EMEA president.

Meanwhile, Mr Emerson was credited with Seko’s international expansion when it launched operations in the UK in 2003, which marked the beginning of two decades of growth in Europe, Asia and across the Americas. He also helped establish Seko as one of the first companies to enter the e-commerce market in 2011. Last year, Seko launched a dedicated e-commerce business unit.

“We are sincerely grateful to David, as Seko would not be where we are today without him. Seko is excited to see where he embarks on his next journey,” said president and CEO James Gagne.

“I’m extremely proud of all Seko has accomplished in the last 20 years and have the utmost confidence in Maxime,” Mr Emerson said.

“His knowledge of e-commerce as well as traditional freight forwarding will be a significant asset and I wish him all the best. I’ll always be an advocate for Seko,” he added.

Mr Bessiere is based in Seko’s EMEA headquarters in Paris.