David Lee is an Operations Manager, and spreads his time between Nottingham and Oldbury Motorstores. He’s worked for Arnold Clark for eight years.
He joined the forces in 2004 at just 19, serving as a policeman in the Royal Air Force – though he didn’t arrest anyone. His job was to secure aircraft, ensuring passengers were processed and safe to fly in countries like Afghanistan, where he served two tours. ‘There’s no specific thing that you learn in the RAF,’ he reckons. ‘It’s more about becoming a well-rounded person. One day you’re taking charge of the situation and being a leader, the next you’re taking instructions.’
When David left the forces in 2008, the dream was to become a firefighter, but it didn’t work out. He then went on to work for a car finance company as a salesperson – and found he was a natural. But the company went under, and he was made redundant. He then tried his hand at a recruitment role, and in a horrible coincidence, the recruitment company also went bust, leaving him without a job once more.
Luckily, a friend suggested he give Arnold Clark a try, and in 2009, he joined the company as a senior salesperson at West Bromwich Motorstore. The rest, as they say, is history. In December of the same year, he joined the team at Oldbury Motorstore as a senior sales executive. By March of the following year he’d been made sales manager.
When he left the RAF, he found the most challenging thing about the transition was losing the sense of camaraderie that came with living on a base. He had to adjust to civilian life all over again – he’d never even lived with his wife full-time before! Though he’d travelled the world, he had to rediscover it afresh. ‘In the forces’, he says, ‘people forget how big the world is. Your world is very small, which can make it overwhelming for leavers.’
But the great thing about working in car sales is that he’s part of a team again – and everyone’s in it together. He loves his current job. The best part? Selling cars gives him a buzz that’s like nothing else he’s experienced.
He understands the very special qualities it takes to serve in the forces; and he’d advise anyone presented with the opportunity to recruit an ex-serviceperson to go for it. ‘If I had two people in front of me’, he says, ‘And one of them had been selling cars down the road, and another had just left the forces, I’d take on the guy who’s just left the forces. I’ve seen it proven time and time again, if someone’s served, I want to talk to them. If you get an individual who’s willing to learn, 100%, I’d give them a go.’