David Pickering, former chief executive of Culina subsidiary Eddie Stobart, has announced his appointment as CEO of William Stobart and Son, which trades as WS Transportation.
Pickering left his role as chief executive of Culina subsidiary Eddie Stobart in January this year, after 34 years at the company.
His departure from Culina closely followed that of William Stobart, who left his post as Culina Group deputy CEO in October 2024 around the same time that Thomas van Mourik stood down as Culina CEO.
WS Transportation was established in April 2014 by William Stobart and his son Edward Stobart and initially focused on logistics for the construction industry and high and heavy haulage. It now offers a wide range of services including tanker logistics, pallet distribution and warehousing.
The company employs over 700 staff and operates a fleet of more than 800 trucks across 30 depots.
It is owned by WS Holdco, which recently purchased the Alternative Parcels Company (APC) the largest independent parcel delivery network in the UK. The network processed more than 30 million parcels in the year to 30 March 2025.
Pickering has been working as CEO at William Stobart and Son for some months. Announcing his formal appointment as CEO on LinkedIn today (14 October), Pickering said: “I’m thrilled to share some exciting news. I have officially joined William Stobart and Son as the new chief executive officer.
“It is a privilege to lead such a talented and hungry team to help shape and deliver the future business vision and mission anchored to our customers, goals, our colleagues and our innovative, systemic approach to logistic services.
“I am grateful for the trust placed in me by the new ownership board of WS Holdco, owners of APC, and the entire William Stobart and son team together, we will continue driving the entrepreneurial spirit, creating value for our customers and building on the strong brand and foundation that is already in place.
“Excited for what’s ahead and to team up under the leadership of William Stobart.”
