Coats plc New Non-Executive Director

Coats plc, the world’s leading industrial thread and consumer textile crafts business, has appointed David Gosnell as Non-Executive Director, with effect from 19 February 2015.  David will also chair Coats’ Remuneration Committee.

David has over 30 years’ experience in supply and procurement strategy and execution.  In December 2014, he retired from Diageo plc where he had most recently held the role of President of Global Supply and Procurement.  He led a team of 9,000 people around the world across manufacturing, logistics and technical operations as well as managing Diageo’s global procurement budget.  Prior to spending a total of 16 years at Diageo in a variety of roles he was at HJ Heinz for 25 years.

Mike Clasper, Chairman, Coats plc, said: ‘David is an excellent addition to the Coats Board.  He brings extensive supply and procurement knowledge acquired during his time with world class global manufacturing companies.  This will bring invaluable additional industry expertise and perspective to our board.’

David Gosnell added: ‘I am extremely pleased to be joining the board of Coats plc.  It has a strong manufacturing heritage and I am looking forward to helping contribute to its continued growth.’ 

David is also currently Non-Executive Director of Brambles Ltd, the supply chain solutions provider. 

Additional background

David began his career at HJ Heinz in 1973 where he held a series of operational roles before becoming UK Procurement Director in 1992 and then European Operations Director in 1995.  He joined Diageo plc in 1998 as Director of European Supply Chain.  In 2008 he became President, Global Supply and Procurement, a role he held until his retirement in December 2014.  He also chaired the Diageo Environmental Committee.

David holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Middlesex University and has completed Supply Chain Manufacturing – Drive Operational Excellence at INSEAD (Singapore).

About Coats

With a rich heritage dating back to the 1750s, Coats is the world's leading industrial thread and consumer textile crafts business, at home in more than 70 countries, employing over 20,000 people across six continents. Revenues in 2013 were US$1.7bn. 

Coats’ pioneering history and innovative culture ensure the company continues leading the way around the world: providing complementary and value added products and services to the apparel and footwear industries; extending the crafts offer into new markets and online; and applying innovative techniques to develop products in new areas such as tracer threads, aramids and fibre optics.

• One in five garments on the planet is held together using Coats’ thread
• 100 million car airbags are made using Coats’ thread every year
• Coats produces enough yarn to knit 70 million scarves a year
• In three and a half hours, Coats makes enough thread to go to the moon and back
• 400 million pairs of shoes are made every year using Coats’ thread
• One million teabags using Coats’ thread are brewed every 10 minutes
• Thousands of surgical operations take place every day using Coats’ thread
• Thomas Edison used Coats’ thread in 1879 to invent the light bulb
• Coats produces enough thread to reach around the Equator every 11 minutes 
• Coats is the second largest and fastest growing global zip manufacturer

Learn more about thread manufactures in our clothing trim manufacturers directory.

You may also have interest in reading our previous blog post about Rajiv Sharma who became executive director in 2014.

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