ABOUT
Developing complementary marketing, brand and insight skills with large brands and more for over 20 years.
My marketing career started in 2003 working in direct marketing and customer loyalty. I later progressed to running large-scale marketing campaigns across all types of media channel – TV, outdoor, press, digital and more – for Discovery Channel, Standard Life, Aberdeen Standard Investments and abrdn.
The opportunity to learn about brand management began at Sky where I collaborated with different departments to launch the new “Believe in better” brand positioning. I later expanded my brand practice to cover brand strategy and planning - working on brand partnerships, corporate transactions and brand transformation for Discovery Channel, Standard Life, Aberdeen Standard Investments and abrdn.
I have always used customer insight, data and research to make brand and marketing activity stronger. This began with large-scale consumer brand tracking and grew to cover customer research, insight and marketing measurement programmes for Standard Life, Aberdeen Standard Investments and abrdn.
I had the opportunity to consult for corporate and charity partners whilst working at Standard Life, Aberdeen Standard Investments and abrdn . Currently I am working as an independent consultant, where I enjoy the challenge and fulfilment of delivering big brand thinking to working with different sizes of businesses in different sectors.
You can find out more about my work here, and about my career history and interests below.
Career
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Consultant / Independent / Edinburgh / 2024 onwards.
Head of Brand Strategy and Insight / abrdn / Edinburgh / 2021 to 2024
Senior Brand Planner / Aberdeen Standard Investments / Edinburgh 2018 to 2021
Senior Brand Manager / Standard Life / Edinburgh / 2011 to 2018
Head of Marketing / News International / Glasgow / 2010 to 2021
Consumer and Trade Marketing Manager / Discovery Channel / London / 2008 to 2010
Brand Manager / Marketing Executive / Sky / London / 2003 to 2008
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2024 onwards
Working Rite / Employability Charity / 4 projects spanning full brand transformation to implementation.
Wordtree / Strategic Communications Agency / Marketing strategy, segmentation and activity planning.
Blair Black Films / Factual TV Production / Brand strategy, creation and delivery.
Forrit / Enterprise Digital Technology / Storytelling, messaging and origin story.
Pre 2024
Interactive Investor / Wealth management platform / Brand and customer communications strategy.
Big Issue Invest / Funder / Specialist advisor and mentor to multiple social enterprises.
Turn The Tables / Social Enterprise / Brand strategy and naming.
National Support Network / Digital Wellbeing Platform / Proposition and segmentation.
Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop / Specialist art production facility / Branding and design development.
Into Work / Employability Charity / Brand strategy / messaging and identity.
Career Ready / Youth Development / Brand change management.
Hearts and Minds / Brand advisory.
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Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop / Specialist art production facility / Trustee / 2017 to 2024
Venture Scotland / Youth Development - Trustee / 2016 to 2018
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Inspiring Scotland / Specialist Volunteer Network / Education and advisory support / 2017 to present.
Love Will Save The Day FM / Digital radio Station and community / Strategy and governance support / 2023 to 2025.
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BA (Hons) Marketing, University of Stirling, 2002.
Interests
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Listening to records, live music performances, online radio stations and more.
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Edinburgh’s best places for coffee, home brew processes, roasters and recipes.
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Trainers, jackets and Japanese casualwear brands all interest me far, far too much.
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Getting outdoors for nice long walks with friends. I have also used the ‘walk and talk’ meeting option for some time.