He may not be as well known as Reggie or Miyamoto,but for the past 20 years David Yarnton has been an integral part of Nintendo’s UK branch. From 1995 to 2003, Yarnton served as Director of Sales. In 2003 he accepted the position of General manager. An exact reason has not been given for his leave,. however Nintendo has released the following statement.
“Nintendo of Europe announces with regret that David Yarnton has decided to pursue opportunities for a change of career outside Nintendo and therefore will shortly be leaving the company. David has had a distinguished career of almost 20 years at Nintendo, first as Sales Director of Nintendo Australia and then, since 2003, as General Manager of Nintendo UK. Nintendo wishes him every success in his choice of new career. Mr Shibata, European President of Nintendo, will be working alongside the UK’s senior management team and will be actively involved in the running of the UK office until a replacement is announced.”
The timing of Yarnton’s leave could not be worse. This is an integral time for Nintendo with the impending launch of the Wii U and the ongoing hype of the 3DS. Although this will not likely impact the launch of the Wii U, it will short hand the UK branch’s resources, and stretch Eupropean President Satoru Shibata thin as he works with the Nintendo UK management until a replacement is found.
There is no word on a possible replacement, chances are they have not even started looking, but with the celebrity status of Reggie and Miyamoto, I would hope that they find someone that is likeable, a strong leader, and an innovator. With word of Yarnton’s leave there have been many inquiries as to what he will do next. I would guess that his selection of competitor gaming companies is low, as I am sure he had a non compete built into his contract, but wherever he goes I wish him luck and only the best!
