Trader Interactive, a leading marketplace and dealer services provider for the lifestyle vehicle and commercial equipment industries, today announced an expansion of its executive team with the appointment of Kamal Hathi as chief product and technology officer and Simon Heseltine as vice president of audience growth.
Both new positions are part of an aggressive growth initiative that has seen company headcount surge 20 percent since the group’s 2017 acquisition by Paris-based Eurazeo and Goldman Sachs’ Merchant Banking Division.
Hathi and Heseltine are helping drive a strategic growth roadmap that spans Trader Interactive’s entire marketplace portfolio, from Cycle Trader, RV Trader, ATV Trader, PWC Trader, Snowmobile Trader and Aero Trader to Commercial Truck Trader and Equipment Trader, as well as company services that help dealers and OEMs optimize their businesses.
Before joining Trader Interactive, Hathi, a 22-year Microsoft veteran, served as general manager for Microsoft’s industry leading Power BI business intelligence and analytics product suite. At Trader Interactive he oversees all product management, engineering, and design. This includes marketplace enhancements, dealer solutions, and digital marketing services that leverage Trader Interactive’s unique big data assets, and machine learning and AI innovations. He has also joined Trader Interactive’s board of directors.
Heseltine is a search authority, recently named one of the 140 Top SEO Experts You Should Be Following in 2019 by Search Engine Journal, whose experience includes positions as Vice President of Search at ForRent.com, Global SEO Business Lead for Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Senior Director of Audience Development for AOL Inc. His Trader Interactive responsibilities involve maximizing consumer use of the company’s marketplaces through search technology, generating more leads for the thousands of dealers who advertise on company sites through that audience expansion, and expanding the company’s SEO, SEM, and social marketing service offerings to help dealers better engage with their in-market consumers and expand their business.
“Our strengths lie in our core marketplace platform, the number of vertical industry segments we serve, and the data insights we glean from user traffic that exceeds 9 million unique visitors every month. We now have scores of projects in the pipeline that will add value for consumers and dealers alike by leveraging these assets in innovative ways,” said Lori Stacy, CEO of Trader Interactive. “With their deep experience and strong track records, Kamal and Simon are playing a pivotal role in both defining and driving these efforts and thereby helping us accelerate company development and growth.”
Key new services and marketplace enhancements being developed under Hathi and Heseltine will launch publicly over the next year.