From Frontline Security to Sales Director: The Alex Collins Story of Strength, Second Chances and Seeing Potential

Left school with few qualifications, joined the Royal Navy at 16 and entered security as a relief officer during the financial crash. Today, Alex Collins is helping lead Carlisle’s growth as Sales Director. His journey proves that where somebody begins does not have to define where they finish.

“I’ve gone from being a security officer on the ground to Sales Director, with so many different roles in between. There are incredible careers in this industry, but we do not champion them enough.” says Alex Collins, our Sales Director.

Finding Direction at Sixteen

Growing up in St Helens, a working-class town with rugby league at its heart, Alex admits he never took school particularly seriously. He left with few qualifications and no clear idea of what his future might look like.

A plumbing course seemed like the natural place to begin, but it took only a few months for Alex to realise he had chosen the wrong trade. “I am not practical at all,” he laughs. “I cannot even change a light bulb in my house.”

Still unsure what to do, Alex happened to walk past a Royal Navy recruitment office. He stepped inside for a conversation and, at just 16, made a decision that would give him something his younger life had been missing, i.e., discipline and purpose.

The Navy Lessons That Never Left

Alex joined the Royal Navy as a warfare specialist, travelling alone from St Helens to Plymouth for eight weeks of initial training followed by a further 16 weeks of specialist training. At an age when many young people are still heavily reliant on home, he was booking his own journeys, washing his own clothes and learning to take responsibility for himself.

“The Navy taught me discipline and independence,” he explains. “Even the way I present myself today comes from that grounding.”

After just under four years, Alex left in 2008, as the financial crash was making employment increasingly difficult to find. He had expected his military background to make the transition into civilian work relatively straightforward. Instead, he found himself asking a familiar question once again: what now?

Starting Again on the Frontline

Security services had his answer; Alex gained his SIA licence and began working as a relief security officer across the North West. There was no permanent site or any predictable routine. He went wherever somebody was needed, taking shifts across retail and construction before securing an opportunity in Kingdom Security’s control room. Working 12-hour shifts and often completing around 60 hours a week, Alex began thinking seriously about what could come next.

Having left school without proper qualifications, he decided to rebuild his education from the ground up. In his spare time, he volunteered in youth and community work, completing qualifications from Level 2 through to Level 4 before progressing to a B.A. Honours degree in Law and Criminal Justice.

For three years, Alex attended university full time while continuing to work long shifts and provide for his family. Having become a father at 19, his children had given his ambition a deeper purpose.

“They have always motivated me to achieve more and give them a better life,” he says.

The Email That Changed His Career

After completing his degree, Alex considered moving into legal practice. Before making that decision, he emailed Kingdom’s then CEO, Terry Barton, directly and asked whether there was an opportunity for him within the business and there was!

Recognising the reputation Alex had built in the control room, Terry offered him a trainee operations position. Supported by experienced mentors, Alex began attending client meetings, visiting sites and learning how to manage contracts and lead teams. At just 23, he became what he recalls being told was the youngest operations manager in the company’s history. Over almost ten years with Kingdom, he progressed from the control room to Head of Retail, overseeing a portfolio worth around £20 million.

“I have always wanted more responsibility, and I have always wanted to learn,” he says. “I try to align myself with somebody I really respect and learn as much as I can. I am like a sponge!”

From Managing Contracts to Creating Growth

Alex’s next role at Mitie strengthened his understanding of strategic account management and complex national operations. He later joined Sunbelt Rentals to help establish a new division focused on the facilities management sector, marking his move into pure sales and business development.

He learned how to identify opportunities, build a pipeline and take a prospect from an initial conversation through to proposal, contract signing, mobilisation and more. In his tenure, Alex secured major deals and was named National Business Development Manager of the Year within the division.

Every organisation added something to his development, but one personal value remained constant.

“I am thankful for every business I have worked for,” Alex says. “I never leave on bad terms and always keep those bridges open.”

“Integrity is one of my most important values.”

Finding the Right Culture at Carlisle

Alex had followed Carlisle for several years, drawn to its visible leadership and recognition of frontline colleagues.

When he joined the organisation, he discovered that its people focused culture was not simply something presented publicly. “Even at SMT meetings, the conversation is about how we make life better for our people,” he explains. “It is probably the strongest people culture I have ever seen.”

That principle directly influences the commercial decisions he make. Alex makes sure to pursue business where colleagues receive the right pay, welfare, uniform and equipment.

“If a prospect only wants to pay minimum wage, I will thank them for their time and explain that it is not for us.”

His conversations with CEO Paul Evans also began another important mentoring relationship. Alex credits Paul with helping him understand more about the industry and the psychology of sales, while trusting him to grow into the Sales Director Carlisle needed.

“He must have seen something in me,” Alex reflects. “The last two and a half years have almost been a mentorship. He has taught me a great deal.”

Seeing Potential in Other People

Today, Alex is building the team and commercial momentum needed to support Carlisle’s growth ambitions. Yet his greatest professional satisfaction does not come from achieving targets and contract value. He firmly believes in helping other people progress. “I always think about the mentors who helped me,” he says.

 “If I can pass some of that down, that is what keeps the world going round.”

When somebody within Carlisle asks to learn more about sales, Alex would make time for a coffee, share his experience and help them explore their own potential.

“I like to see the best in people,” he adds. “I want to see people develop and thrive.”

The person whose own potential could easily have been overlooked has become a leader determined to recognise it in others.

The Strongman Behind the Sales Director

Away from work, Alex’s strength takes a more literal form. A former discus, shot put and rugby league competitor, he later entered regional strongman events, winning Wigan’s Strongest Man and South Yorkshire’s Strongest Man and finishing second in Liverpool. Interestingly, one video of him competing attracted around four million views online.

His weekends now largely belong to his two daughters, often spent travelling between gymnastics and swimming, with gym sessions fitted around family life.

Alex has experienced a career trajectory that is far from straightforward. He simply built himself through responsibility, relentless learning and people who recognised his ability before he appeared to be the obvious choice. His journey from relief security officer to Sales Director is a reminder of what can happen when somebody is given the opportunity to begin again and the confidence to keep moving forward.