retail
Chief membership officer, Co-op Group
Matt Atkinson
Matt Atkinson joined the Co-operative Group in early 2018 having previously worked as CMO at Saga and Tesco. He took on a new role for the group as chief membership officer, responsible for digital, data, brand marketing, communications and community, campaigning and membership. Growing member numbers and boosting engagement is key for the Co-op, which gives its members an active role in its business and governance. At the start of 2018, it launched its ‘Stronger Co-op, Stronger Communities’ strategy, which aims to make the relationship between the business and its communities mutually beneficial.
In Atkinson’s first year in charge, member sales penetration was 35%, members have made more than 670,000 local cause selections, and over 125,000 members have participated in Co-op projects (such as a test of digital coupons). More recently, it has overhauled its marketing to bring its three businesses – insurance, food and funeralcare – together under an overarching strategy to show how the entire company is funding community programmes.
Alessandra Bellini
Chief customer officer, Tesco
When Alessandra Bellini joined Tesco, the retailer was trying to rebuild its brand and business after an accounting scandal uncovered in 2014. Her mission as chief customer officer is to build the Tesco brand in way that makes it “warmer and more loved” by its customers. To do that, she has focused on re-establishing Tesco’s quality and value perceptions. That has involved an overhaul of its own-brand ranges to make its positioning across everyday, core and upmarket clearer.
She has also refreshed its marketing and brought Jamie Oliver on board to help customers make better food choices. There is also a greater focus on Clubcard and using data to analyse shopper habits to trigger a move towards healthier eating. All of this work has helped the Tesco business and brand as it celebrates its centenary year. Group sales were up 11.5% to £56.9bn in the year to 23 February, while pre-tax profits rose 28.8%. Tesco UK saw like-for-like sales rise 1.7%, while perceptions of quality were up 1.9 points and value up 1.3 points, according to YouGov BrandIndex data.
Claire Farrant
Marketing director, Lidl
Claire Farrant has brought her decade of experience at Tesco to Lidl, with a view to helping the challenger gain even more ground on the market leaders. While Lidl is known for low prices, Farrant has focused its marketing on building its quality perceptions. She introduced a new brand strapline, ‘Big on quality, Lidl on price’ in 2017, and earlier this year overhauled its advertising with new agency Karmarama to focus on the big shop.
That is already having an impact, with Lidl’s average basket size growing 3% year on year to £19, although this is still below the average £22.65 spend at the big four, according to Kantar. Its market share is also increasing, with Lidl’s sales up 7.7% year on year in the 12 weeks to 11 August, giving it a record market share of 5.9%. It has also added 489,000 new shoppers as it continues its aggressive store opening plan.
Martin George
Customer director, Waitrose
Since joining Waitrose two-and-a-half years ago, Martin George has been focused on retaining and growing Waitrose’s customer base through effective marketing activity, loyalty plans and store development. To do that, George, alongside his counterpart at John Lewis, has overhauled Waitrose’s brand identity to introduce Waitrose & Partners to put a focus on the people who work for the company.
He has also launched a campaign focused on food, ‘Beautifully Simple’, and is working with the business to improve its sustainability credentials. Waitrose has also focused on service, with the company gaining top position in Which?’s supermarket survey. All of this has helped boost Waitrose’s performance, with revenue up 1.2% year on year to £6.4bn and operating profit rising 18.1% to £203.2m for the year ending January despite a challenging retail market.
Craig Inglis
Customer director, John Lewis
Craig Inglis has overseen the marketing team at John Lewis for more than 10 years, helping raise the brand’s profile – particularly at Christmas with its now iconic festive ads. He was pivotal in the company’s recent rebrand to John Lewis & Partners, working for four years to ensure it reflects a modern business and is understood by partners and customers alike. He also helped to develop the ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ campaign, its first with Waitrose. Adding to its hugely popular Christmas ads, last year John Lewis launched a film focused on the life of Elton John to showcase its positioning on ‘thoughtful giving’. Inglis has also been working to improve the customer experience in-store through services such as personal shopping as well as experiential marketing, including a 2,000 sq ft space where customers could explore the Christmas ad.
Despite a challenging environment for retail, and department stores in particular, John Lewis remains profitable (although operating profits were down 55.5% to £114.7m, hit by an investment in stores and discounting). It also has a hugely strong brand, topping YouGov BrandIndex rankings for this year.
Andy Murray
Chief customer officer, Asda
Andy Murray was brought in from Asda-owner Walmart with the aim of overhauling its value proposition, transforming stores and rethinking its marketing strategy. To do that, Murray brought AMVBBDO on board to lead on its advertising activity, with a focus on being faster, simpler and more cost-effective. Its ‘ecosystem’ model is helping the supermarket begin working on ideas eight weeks sooner than it was before, with AMV leading on core brand ideas while specialist partners and their marketing operations team develop assets and spot opportunities.
In-store, it has linked its Scan & Go technology to other channels such as mobile to get more personalised offers. It has brought on board Google voice skills to let customers shop via home assistant. Amid a tough environment, Asda saw like-for-like sales increase 0.5% in its second quarter, with price position and availability key to growth.
Laurent Tiersen
UK and Ireland country marketing manager, Ikea
Laurent Tiersen is an innovative marketer who has found a way to make the product lines Ikea sells translate through ads and experiential campaigns into consumers’ everyday living. Through its ‘Wonderful Everyday’ brand platform, Tiersen has made Ikea famous for creative marketing that reflects consumer trends. For example, it has shifted strategy away from its traditional focus on rooms to instead put the spotlight on product innovation to show how a few items can transform a room at a time when more people are renting.
This strategy is also hugely effective. Return on marketing investment from the ‘Wonderful Everyday’ campaign was calculated at £2.31 for every £1 invested and earned the company a Silver IPA Effectiveness Award in 2018. This marketing is helping Ikea maintain growth in the UK, with sales up 5.9% to £1.96bn in the year ending August 2018 and market share growing 0.4 points to 8.4%. It attributed this growth in part to investment in its digital offer, services and stores, including its city centre ‘Planning Studio’ format.
Katherine Whitton
CMO, Specsavers
A blue-chip marketer with global and UK experience, Katherine Whitton is ideally placed to take Specsavers global. Joining as CMO in mid-2018, she is tasked with evolving a brand that has been made famous by its ‘Should’ve gone to Specsavers’ slogan. That has involved launching its first global ‘Should’ve’ campaign, which features a frustrated cat and an upside-down cat flap. “The beauty of the campaign idea and insight is how universal it is with no barriers to it being enjoyed by all, whatever your age and wherever you live,” she says. Marketing Specsavers style credentials and appealing to fashion-conscious consumers have also been key, as has raising awareness of eye health. And Specsavers has been broadening its reach through a partnership with England Test Cricket, including the Specsavers Ashes Series. Away from advertising, Whitton has focused on upskilling her team, in particular in creative briefing and evaluation.
Toni Wood
Chief commercial and marketing officer, DFS
When Toni Wood joined DFS, the brand faced a challenge to move away from a focus on sales activity to attract more affluent shoppers. Wood leads a diverse team – including marketers, product designers, buyers, merchandisers and crafts people – to communicate the quality of its sofas and the craft that goes into each one. A partnership with Aardman (the animation studio behind Wallace and Gromit) has worked to elevate perceptions of the brand, with a focus on quality and craftmanship. A partnership with Team GB has helped expand reach, while DFS also has a deal with the British Heart Foundation that makes it easy for customers to donate their old sofas, raising £13m at the last count.
This strategy has paid off for DFS, which has seen a 28% increase in consideration among affluent shoppers and an incremental sales increase of £109m and a 64% increase in profit ROI (as well as a Gold IPA Effectiveness Award in 2018). The business is also on the up, with group revenue rising 29.1% for the six months to the end of December and like-for-like sales growth.
Adam Zavalis
Brand and marketing communications director, Boots
(for work at Aldi)
Aldi has had another year of rapid growth, as a focus on price, as well as the return of Kevin the Carrot at Christmas, helped the German discounter attract more shoppers. According to Kantar, at least half of all households now shop at Aldi, a sign of how successfully the brand has established itself on the UK grocery scene. It is now the fifth biggest supermarket in the UK and has forced the big four to respond with price falls and – in the case of Tesco and Jack’s, as well as Sainsbury’s and Netto – the launch of their own discount formats to counter its growth.
When Zavalis joined the company six years ago, its quality perception score was at 0 on YouGov BrandIndex but by 2019 had reached 24.5, while its value score rose from 34.8 to 49.8 and reputation from -8.2 to 7. Zavalis’ success at Aldi earned him a move to Boots in February this year, where he is brand and communications director.
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RETAIL
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media, telecoms
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ONLINE AND DISRUPTORS
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RETAIL
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TRAVEL, TRANSPORT AND HOSPITALITY
CHARITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR
CONSUMER GOODS
CONSUMER TECH AND AUTOMOTIVE
MEDIA, TELECOMS AND ENTERTAINMENT
BACK TO TOP
ONLINE AND DISRUPTORS
REGULATED INDUSTRIES
RETAIL
SPORT, GAMING AND GAMBLING
TRAVEL, TRANSPORT AND HOSPITALITY
B2B
CHARITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR
CONSUMER GOODS
CONSUMER TECH AND AUTOMOTIVE
MEDIA, TELECOMS AND ENTERTAINMENT
B2B
ONLINE AND DISRUPTORS
REGULATED INDUSTRIES
RETAIL
SPORT, GAMING AND GAMBLING
TRAVEL, TRANSPORT AND HOSPITALITY
CHARITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR
CONSUMER GOODS
CONSUMER TECH AND AUTOMOTIVE
MEDIA, TELECOMS AND ENTERTAINMENT
ONLINE AND DISRUPTORS
REGULATED INDUSTRIES
RETAIL
SPORT, GAMING AND GAMBLING
TRAVEL, TRANSPORT AND HOSPITALITY
B2B
CHARITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR
CONSUMER GOODS
CONSUMER TECH AND AUTOMOTIVE
MEDIA, TELECOMS AND ENTERTAINMENT
B2B
ONLINE AND DISRUPTORS
REGULATED INDUSTRIES
RETAIL
SPORT, GAMING AND GAMBLING
TRAVEL, TRANSPORT AND HOSPITALITY
CHARITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR
CONSUMER GOODS
CONSUMER TECH AND AUTOMOTIVE
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hOME
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meet the judges
meet the judges
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meet the judges
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methodology
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The growing appeal of second-party data
FURTHER READING
Bringing brands
back into line
The Future of the CMO/CIO Relationship
Striving to serve today’s connected customer
The Business Case for Customer Journey Mapping
From Marketing Week's 'Intelligent 1:1 Customer Journeys', sponsored by Salesforce
From Econsultancy
How CX impacts the bottom line