Stokes was essentially a salesman, and he successfully led Leyland Motor Corporation in the period up to 1968. During this time he was immensely successful in developing export sales and establishing overseas subsidiaries. This established his stature as a captain of industry especially in the eyes of prime minister Harold Wilson. Wilson encouraged him to merge Leyland with BMC however he never really got to grips with the scale and politics of British Leyland, which had now incorporated BMC, Rover, Jaguar and related commercial vehicle marques with nearly 40 factories and over 100 business units.