After two years without a marketing manager, Proton Cars UK has appointed Jane Bentley to take on the role.

Bentley, who started working for the manufacturer in 2000 as an assistant to the board of directors in Malaysia, previously held the post of marketing executive.

“We’ve only just recently got a budget big enough to warrant a marketing manager,” she tells AM. “But due to the success of our recent marketing activities we felt it was a good time for someone to take on the job. I was really pleased to be offered the role.”

Bentley says she wasn’t at all nervous about starting her new job. “I’ve worked with the people here for years, so it was easy for me,” she says.

The current general manager of sales and marketing, Simon Park, will now focus more on sales operations and dealer network strategy while maintaining overall responsibility for the marketing function.

Over the last year, Proton has seen a 48% year-on-year increase on UK sales, which coincided with a series of TV campaigns featuring the Savvy and Gen-2.

Bentley says: “We’re now planning to raise awareness of our brand and products through national press and TV campaigns. We need to work on changing the perception people have of Proton and give them more of an idea of who we are.”