Jon Atherton to leave Ci Distribution after ten years

The managing director has been with the business from £3m in revenue, now heading for more than £50m in attainable revenues

UK specialist distributor Ci Distribution managing director Jon Atherton today announced he will be leaving the company June 30.

Atherton joined Ci Distribution, the specialised value-added distribution arm of Centerprise International, in 2016 as sales and marketing director.

After a decade in the role, he stepped up to managing director at the end of last year.

Atherton revealed his “incredibly difficult decision” to leave in a LinkedIn post.

“After ten incredible years, I’ll be leaving Ci Distribution on the 30 of June, an incredibly difficult decision to make but a new opportunity has been presented to me I couldn’t refuse,” he wrote.

“I’ve decided it’s time for a new challenge — a chance to step outside my comfort zone as I head gracefully into my ‘twilight years’ and see who else I can annoy.”

Reflecting on the past ten years, Atherton expressed his pride in what he and the team have built at Ci Distribution.

“When I started, we were at £3m in revenue, with just four staff and a single vendor.

“Fast forward to today, and we’re a PCR Awards winner 2020, 2022 and 2025 and CRN Awards winner 2021 and 2023, as we head into our new financial year with an achievable £50m+ attainable revenue, with 22+ staff and over 20 vendors – it has been a privilege to support all the CI Distribution team, all our wonderful vendors and super clients. The business has never been stronger for further growth.”

A distribution heavyweight, Atherton has many years in the space under his belt, having previously worked for now troubled disite Exertis.

His first job in the channel was at Jentech as a cable engineer.

After two years Atherton moved onto Entatech, followed by Exertis and finally Ci.