Accell Group N.V.'s supervisory board intends to appoint Jeroen Both as chief supply chain officer (CSCO) responsible for purchasing, planning and logistics and the fourth member of the company's board of directors.

“In recent years, Accell Group has grown considerably, both organically and through numerous acquisitions,” said René Takens, chairman of Accell Group’s board of directors. “We have bolstered the management of the organization in a number of ways in the past year, to make more effective use of the synergies of scale the group as a whole affords, and to make our business processes smarter and more efficient. Jeroen Both’s appointment fits seamlessly into this process. He will be specifically responsible for the continued integration and optimization of the supply chain, which will in turn contribute to our efforts to further strengthen our leading positions in the bicycle and bicycle parts & accessories markets in the years ahead.”

After completing his studies at Groningen University, Both began his career in 1989 at British American Tobacco, where he has held various positions in supply chain management, procurement and production. He has gained extensive international experience, both in Western and Eastern Europe, as well as in Asia, where as supply chain director he led the launch and management of British American Tobacco’s central supply organizations in Moscow and Singapore. He is currently director of operations – other tobacco products for Western Europe.

The Supervisory Board intends to formalize his appointment to the board of directors immediately after the general meeting of shareholders on April, 23. Following his appointment, the board will consist of four members: René Takens (CEO), Hielke Sybesma (CFO), Jeroen Snijders Blok (COO) and Jeroen Both (CSCO).

Based in The Netherlands, Accell Group is the largest bicycle company in Europe in terms of revenue and has been investing aggressively in North America since acquiring Raleigh Ltd. in 2012. In additional to Raleigh and Diamondback, Accell North America markets Lapierre bicycles. Its wholly-owned subsidiary Currie Technologies of Simi Valley, CA markets and distributes both its own eFLOW and IZIP electric bicycle brands, as well as e-bikes made by Haibike, a Germany sport bicycle brand owned by Accell.  Accell also owns bicycle, parts and accessories distributor Seattle Best Bikes, which sells Redline bikes.

In 2013 Accell Group reported sales of €849.0 million, or more than $1 billion.