After three decades of dedication to the laundry and textile care sector, David Benson is celebrating a remarkable 30-year career with Christeyns UK and its predecessor businesses.

Having joined Oils & Soaps in June 1996 as area sales manager for the South East, Benson has witnessed – and helped shape – significant changes across the industry. Over the years, he has progressed through a series of senior leadership roles, building a reputation for developing customer relationships, driving business growth and mentoring future industry leaders.

In his early years with the company, Benson successfully expanded the business across the South East, establishing trading partnerships with major operators including Brooks and White Knight, alongside a number of large independent laundry businesses. His success led to promotion in 2006 to regional operations manager for the East of England, where he took responsibility for sales performance and team management. Five years later, he was appointed national account director for Sunlight, which subsequently became part of Berendsen before being acquired by Elis.

A further career milestone came in 2020 when Benson took responsibility for the Cole & Wilson side of the business at Christeyns, taking on the role of business development director. Earlier this year, his responsibilities expanded again when he assumed leadership of the company’s laundry field team as field operations director.

Today, Benson’s focus is on developing the next generation of industry talent. “Today my role is to develop and mentor the senior leaders in the laundry side of our business, to enable them to fulfil their ambitions and career goals and to ensure we have a proper succession plan in place, with keen, motivated, able and well-developed managers,” Benson said. Reflecting on three decades in the sector, Benson has seen enormous changes in both technology and working practices.

“I started with an analogue mobile phone with an aerial you pulled out and it had to be installed in the car, pre-Bluetooth, and we used pagers,” he recalled. “I wore a shirt and tie and often had morning coffee and toast in the boardroom of some customer offices.” While the tools of the trade may have evolved dramatically since 1996, Benson says the people and relationships have remained at the heart of the business. “I have really enjoyed my 30 years. It has been fun, interesting, stimulating, challenging and a little bit stressful at times!”

His 30-year milestone represents not only a significant personal achievement but also a testament to the value of long-term commitment, adaptability and leadership in an industry that continues to evolve.

As he enters his fourth decade in the business, Benson remains focused on supporting customers, developing teams and helping shape the future of the laundry sector.