Laura Bonson
Head of brand marketing
No7
Laura Bonson joined Boots nearly a decade ago and has worked her way up to become No7’s head of marketing for the UK and Ireland, leading the brand’s output in these locations.
The last few years have been pivotal for The No7 Beauty Company. Its owner, Walgreen Boots Alliance, saw the potential for the house of brands to be a standalone entity, and since then, it hasn’t looked back.
Under Bonson’s stewardship, No7 has grown and reached new audiences, particularly in the skincare world. Leading the brand through dynamic growth periods, such as spearheading the launch of the No7 Future Renew Skincare range, Bonson has made a wide impact. She is credited with proactively supporting internal functions and ensuring comprehensive support for the brand across all channels, as well as working effectively with the brand’s agency partner, WPP.
When asked how marketing has evolved since she started out, she says nothing, and yet everything, has changed. “At its core, marketing is still about diagnostics, strategy and the 4Ps,” she says. “What’s evolved is the sheer number of tactics available, we can meet our audiences in places that didn’t exist a decade ago."
“We are already seeing the impact of AI and automation, so it will be interesting to see how this evolves even further.”
Mediocrity and irrelevance are the biggest challenges facing marketers, says Bonson. “In such a fragmented and noisy market, we all know how essential but challenging it is to cut through.”
Marketers can feel like there are endless avenues to go down for growth. For Bonson, the biggest opportunities for marketers to embrace today are pre-testing, measurement and tech. “The sheer number of tactics, channels and content required bring both immense opportunity, but also high complexity and the potential for inefficiency,” she says. Diving into these areas is “critical” she adds, in a time when budgets are under increasing pressure.
Looking forward, Bonson says: “We are already seeing the impact of AI and automation, so it will be interesting to see how this evolves even further.”
She adds: “I’m excited to see how these technologies can help with some of the critical but more routine tasks like content creation and adaptation, pre-testing and measurement with greater speed and efficiency so we can be freed up to focus on the more strategic and creative parts of the job.”
For future marketers, Bonson’s advice is straightforward but important: “Stay curious”. “Try to embrace the constant change as a learning opportunity,” she adds. She also emphasises the importance of building confidence and capability in both creative and analytical skills – a balance she describes as essential.
