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Duncan McPhee

Chief Operating Officer

Chief Operating Officer

Duncan McPhee recently joined Hendy to make the family-owned car retailer even more local.

 

Hendy prides itself as a South Coast retailer, with close links to local communities from Devon to Kent. New Chief Operating Officer Duncan, who previously worked for rival Lookers, is moving the Hendy network to a more regional model. Notably, this includes appointing three new regional operational directors: split into ‘East’, ‘Central’ and ‘West’. This transition stresses Hendy’s long-term commitment to local communities and local issues, including ensuring individual sites serve their local areas better.

 

Although he is making the English South Coast motor retailer more regional, Duncan comes from the opposite end of the kingdom. Born and bred in Campbeltown near the Mull of Kintyre on the west coast of Scotland, Duncan worked for his dad’s tyre, car service and haulage business as a youngster, on weekends. After school, he moved to Glasgow to sell cars: ‘I was into cars, liked meeting people and was competitive. I thought selling cars would suit me, and it did.’

 

He then went to Arnold Clark, where he spent 10 successful years – including a move south of the border to Warrington in Cheshire.

 

Duncan joined Lookers in 2008. Promotions quickly followed and, in 2021, he became COO. Last October, he joined Hendy.

 

His advice to young car salesmen? ‘Be honest, work hard and know what you’re talking about.’

‘I’ve known Paul [CEO of Hendy] for years from attending various conferences and always thought him a class act. The Hendy group’s reputation is also excellent: very people centric, very professional and a great culture in which people feel trusted and valued. There was also a big ambition to grow the group and that really appealed. I ran a significantly bigger group with a nationwide footprint, so I thought I could help.’

As a young man in Scotland, Duncan was a keen motocross rider, water skier, canoer, golfer, footballer – and even played American football. ‘I got my first motor bike at four years of age – an Italjet 25cc. I later did enduro and motocross.’

 

And American football in Scotland? ‘I loved American football. We even had our own local team.’

 

He spent a lot of time on the water as a youngster. Holidays were spent sailing up and down the west coast of Scotland. He also joined the local RNLI, which covers the notorious Mull of Kintyre. ‘My dad was a coxswain of the Campbeltown lifeboat for 25 years. I joined when I was 16 and was an active crew member until I moved to Glasgow. Rough seas never bothered me. The lifeboats can handle awesome conditions.’

 

In fact, some of Duncan’s lifeboat training was done at Poole and on the Isle of Wight – in the middle of Hendy territory. He does not, however, plan an RNLI comeback on the South Coast.