About Gareth: 

1. How many years have you worked in the industry?

I joined the world of sales and distribution recruitment in April 2001 – so quarter of a century ago which makes me feel very old.  

Back then there were literally hundreds of Business Development Managers in the market – or Broker Consultants as they were often called.

I was one of the Partners of recruitment consultancy for 17 years and then set up davies marsh in January 2023 – all purely focused within sales & distribution.

2. What sectors or specialisms have you focused on — and why?

My focus has always been on sales and distribution.

I specialise in placing Business Development Managers and Business Development Directors with product providers that distribute discretionary fund management, model portfolio services, funds, platforms, pensions and broader investment solutions to the financial adviser community.

3. What do you believe sets your approach apart from other recruiters?

I always remember my late father-in-law, Mike Marsh (that’s where the Marsh in davies marsh came from 😊), telling me when I first started in recruitment that to succeed I simply needed to work hard and be honest with everyone I dealt with.

Fast forward to today, and I’d like to think that both my clients and candidates trust me – which is incredibly important in a market as small and interconnected as ours.

I’m also a specialist in this field, so clients value my honest opinion on which candidates are genuinely strong in what is a very tight marketplace.

Alongside recruitment, I also produce a number of industry reports, including the BDM Benchmark and BDM Life Report, which provide detailed market insight along with salary and bonus benchmarking data.

I also carry out bespoke benchmarking reports for my clients on subjects such as distribution structures with their competitors, basics salaries and bonus scheme. 

4. What’s one achievement in your career that you’re particularly proud of?

One of the achievements I’m most proud of was being retained to build a distribution team for a global wealth management company that was launching a new MPS proposition into the advisory market.

Their Head of MPS approached me after seeing some of my content on LinkedIn and asked me to identify and recruit a team of exceptional BDMs from across the market.

It was a fantastic project to work on. The client was brilliant to partner with, and over time our professional relationship has also developed into a friendship.

5. Outside of work, what keeps you busy?

I’ve been married to my wife Louise (Partner of davies marsh) since 2004 and we have three children – along with a slightly crazy Golden Retriever called Lexie.

I’m also Chair of Trustees for a Christian charity called Leeds & Moortown Furniture Store, which provides second-hand furniture to financially disadvantaged and vulnerable people across Leeds.

Sport-wise, I’ve been doing Olympic-distance triathlons for over ten years and try to complete one or two each year. So if I’m not working, you’ll probably find me on my Wattbike or running around Harewood or Roundhay.