Lawrence Hughes Celebrates 25 Years at AFE / Falcon

Falcon managing director Peter McAllister was delighted to present sales and marketing director Lawrence Hughes with a gift to commemorate his 25th anniversary with AFE, a milestone he celebrated earlier this year. 

Lawrence started his catering equipment journey at Excel Equipment in Oldham in 1989 before moving to Williams Refrigeration in 1993 as Area Sales Manager, where he first came upon Tim Smith and Steve Moore, who would become close friends and colleagues for the next 30 years. He left Williams in 1996 but returned to the company less than a year later.

From Area Sales Manager, he became Business Development Manager, then National Sales Manager and then Regional Sales Director, all for Williams Refrigeration. In 2010 he was offered the opportunity to move across to sister company Falcon Foodservice. “Being given the opportunity to be sales and marketing manager for Falcon is one of the major highlights of my career” said Lawrence. “It was a fantastic opportunity that I couldn’t turn down and I’ve never once regretted it. I’ve worked with some brilliant people over my time at AFE but the current Falcon sales team takes some topping, as we have an excellent mix of people and personalities that drive each other on to always be the best they can be. It is important for me to mention Malcolm Harling at this point who along with Tim Smith afforded me the opportunity and both remain mentors for me. I thank them for their support for so long. I would also like to thank Peter McAllister for his tremendous support in recent years leading Falcon through this most challenging period for us all."

Peter added “Lawrence has been someone who I have learned from and leaned on from my first days at Falcon. His knowledge, experience and network of contacts has been invaluable and I thank and congratulate him on the his 25 years of service to AFE and Falcon and hope to be working with him for many more years to come.”

Asked about his 30+ years in the industry, Lawrence commented “I’ve seen so much change in the industry, but there is no doubt that the last three years have been the most challenging times we’ve faced, with Covid, energy prices, cost of living crisis, global shortages and more. However, these are also exciting times too, with the industry changing and evolving at a faster rate than ever before, with the drive towards net zero and sustainability and a focus on energy efficiency and connectivity. 

I’ve always thought this was a fantastic industry to be a part of and that was proven during Covid when everyone came together to offer help, support and service where and when it was needed. I’m proud to be part of the foodservice industry, have made so many great friends and had some great times and I’m nowhere near finished yet!”