John Kirkland began his career with John Laing in the 1950s after graduating with a degree in civil engineering from Leeds University. In 1967 he joined the family business, founded by his grandfather Robert Kirkland and Alfred Bowmer in 1923.
He was appointed a director of Bowmer & Kirkland in 1970, managing director in 1972 and then chairman in 1976.
He remained chairman for 43 years and in 2019 was succeeded by his son Jack. For the past three years he, along with his brother Robert, has been a life president of the company.
He was also a director of Derby County Football Club.
The company issued a statement saying: “His contribution to B+K has been immense. He was very, very proud of the company and all of the people who work in it.
“In 1999 he received an OBE for services to Derbyshire, in particular for his former role as chairman of Derbyshire Ambulance Service.
“He served as chair of both the Derbyshire Learning and Skills Council (LSC) from 2000-2008 and the LSC East Midlands Regional Council from 2004-2008.
“He was the longest serving director of Derby County, president from 2006 until 2008 and invited to rejoin the board in 2017.”
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