Allied Bakeries has appointed Matt Lee as its new sales director.

The bread manufacturer, which creates products under the Kingsmill, Allinson, Burgen and Sunblest brands, has hired Lee to help facilitate growth with both new and existing customers. He will also take up a position on the company’s board.

Lee said: “Working with ambient products is a great new challenge. The shorter the shelf-life of the product, the faster and more efficient the operation needs to be, so that our customers and consumers have the freshest possible produce.

“Allied Bakeries is by far the fastest-paced operation I’ve been involved in – and it’s a great business. There’s a solid foundation in place here – our people, infrastructure and products are market-leading – and with new service deals and a capital investment programme under way, there’s a foreseeable opportunity for the company to put some real space between itself and our competitors.”

Lee previously worked as sales director for Silverspoon, as well as commercial director for its Crusha brand. In addition, he also worked at Premier Foods for more than three years as director of retail sales, as well as business unit controller for Arla Foods between 2000 and 2005.