Penny Stoolman has been appointed managing director of Prestige Fleet Servicing (Prestige), which is part of the AA.  

Stoolman has more than 30 years’ experience within the automotive and fleet industry, having held numerous senior management, marketing and sales roles.

Prior to joining Prestige, she was group strategy director at Redde Northgate and has also worked for companies including Avis UK, Total Accident Management, Arval and the RAC.

Stoolman’s appointment, says Prestige, demonstrates its commitment to further expand the brand’s national footprint in the service, maintenance and repair (SMR) sector.

In her new role, Stoolman will work closely with the senior leadership team to drive corporate strategy, including the creation of a suite of propositions to support the planned and unplanned motoring needs of both fleets and consumers.

Mina Roopra, head of marketing at Prestige Fleet Servicing, said: “Over the past 18 months, Prestige Fleet Servicing has grown its customer base and garage network to more than 600 garages nationwide; a 40% increase.

“With her experience in management, business strategy and sales respectively, Penny’s appointment will prove pivotal in realising our strategic corporate ambitions to further expand our propositions for fleet operators, our garage network and consumers.”

Stoolman’s future plans include strengthening the offer to garages and their teams as part of ambitious plans to expand the network to 1,000 sites.

She said: “The fleet industry is going through a period of significant change, so it is an exciting time to be joining Prestige.

“As an organisation we are very much focussed on the future transformation of mobility and the potential of technology to help our network and people to innovate and keep pace with the evolving needs of our customers.

“With a number of exciting developments in the pipeline, I’m looking forward to working closely with the team to drive our ambitious goals for 2022 and beyond.” 

The AA bought Prestige Fleet Servicing for around £11 million in 2019. 

At the time, it said that the Prestige acquisition gave it a “strong and profitable platform” to strengthen its presence in SMR, working with fleet and leasing companies, and supporting OEM partners.