Stock Building Supply Holdings LLC announced today it has hired Nigel Stobart as vice president of sales. Stobart, formerly senior vice president and chief operating office for Wire One Communications, will lead Stock's sales teams as well as sales-related initiatives.
Stobart replaces Sean Smith, who left Stock last November.
Today's announcement is one of several moves Stock has made in recent days. Others include the appointment of Building Materials Holding Corp.'s former chief, Robert Mellor, as a board member, and the announcement that Stock will seek to acquire Arkansas' National Home Centers, now in Chapter 11. Stock has said it plans aggressive growth in the near future.
Stobart has been serving recently as a strategic adviser to Stock in connection with its process improvement initiatives, the company said. That similar to some of his work at Wire One, where Stock said Stobart "led key restructuring initiatives and managed the service and product operations as well as the human resources team. Stobart helped lead Wire One through the sale process to a strategic buyer from private equity ownership."
Before Wire One, Stobart worked at Gateway Inc., Bain & Co., and law firms in Melbourne, Australia, and London. He earnined his bachelor's degree and a law degree in Australia and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
"[Stobart] brings tremendous experience and we are fortunate to have him lead this critical function," Stock president and CEO Joe Appelmann said in a statement. "Nigel's focus and drive will strengthen our leading position in the homebuilding industry."
Stock ranked as America's No. 2 LBM operation on last year's ProSales 100 list. It spent several months last year reorganizing while under Chapter 11, which it entered after its former parent, Britain's Wolseley PLC, sold a 51% stake in the company to The Gores Group of Los Angeles. Stock emerged from Chapter 11 last July 11 as a much smaller company, with expected revenues near $1 billion and a focus on 19 markets nationwide.
