Louise O’Sullivan has joined the leadership team at Volvo Car Financial Services UK as commercial director.

Louise O’Sullivan, commercial director at Volvo Car Financial Services UK

She arrives from Renault Group where she held senior roles as director of network operations and marketing director.

O’Sullivan succeeds Chris Eady, who joined Volvo six years ago as head of network and distribution strategy and has led the commercial function at VCFSUK since the company’s inception in 2021.

VCFSUK provides retail and wholesale funding for Volvo Cars’ UK retail network, as well as Polestar and LEVC. The company was formed in early 2021 as a 50:50 joint venture between Volvo Cars and Santander Consumer (UK) and provides competitive finance products for customers purchasing new and used vehicles.

Steve Catlin, managing director, commented: “Louise brings great experience and insights to our company at a critical time. Our industry is transforming to a new agency model, changing the role played by financial services. This calls for leadership in making informed and effective commercial decisions – a quality that Louise has demonstrated superbly. I’m sure she will make an invaluable contribution to our work with Volvo Cars, Polestar and LEVC.”

It’s almost two years since Volvo announced that it will become a fully electric car company by 2030 and move all sales online. Since then, it’s launched a dedicated Fleet and Business Online portal and a UK-first direct-to-consumer used cars portal. Dealerships will remain a crucial part of the customer experience while financial services will have a key role in supporting the shift to an agency model.

Louise O’Sullivan said: “Volvo Cars, Polestar and LEVC are some of the most exciting and progressive brands on the market, and I am looking forward to helping design and deliver financial services that perfectly address the diverse and changing needs of consumers as they adopt to new vehicle usage and ownership models.”

Andy Jones also joined VCFSUK as national sales manager in January 2023. His background includes various roles at VW Group where he was most recently area sales manager for Audi.

In his new role, Jones will work closely with O’Sullivan and the entire Volvo retailer network to support the overall finance proposition from VCFSUK and the transition to the new agency model.