Pelham Bell Pottinger promotes Gavin Davis to managing director

Gavin Davis will assume control of Bell Pottinger’s financial arm after being promoted to the role of managing director with immediate effect.

Davis, who has worked at Pelham almost since its inception in 2004, will lead the business, reporting to Henderson.

Additionally, the agency is to create a ‘management group’, consisting of partners Charlie Vivian, Mark Antelme and Victoria Geoghegan, which will work closely with Davis to develop the business.

Henderson announced the appointment in an e-mail to staff, adding that the group ‘may also appoint a senior figure from the industry as chairman of the Pelham Bell Pottinger business’.

The financial PR business currently has a strategic advisory committee, including Baroness Wheatcroft, ambassador John Danilovich and the vice-chairman of Hawkpoint Peter Kiernan.

Davis has worked at Pelham for more than eight years, advising clients across sectors including private equity, sovereign wealth, global business and governments. His clients have included TPG, Birds Eye Iglo Group, FTSE-listed Balfour Beatty and Premier Oil.

Before joining Pelham, Gavin worked for Australia’s largest independent corporate comms firm, Royce Communications, for five years, advising blue-chip Australian clients including KPMG, CVC, Macquarie Bank and Hertz.

He told PRWeek: ‘The business has been hugely successful, so our focus will be on continuing to do what we do well and hiring really good people to grow the business.

‘Last year, we were in the top five globally for M&A transactions, so we’re already playing at the highest level.’