At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the marketing strategy for Ready-to-Drink brands, driving innovation and brand growth.
- Company: Join a dynamic company that celebrates diversity and creativity in building beloved brands.
- Benefits: Enjoy flexible working options and a supportive, inclusive culture.
- Why this job: Shape the future of RTD brands while making a cultural impact and driving commercial success.
- Qualifications: 10+ years in marketing, preferably in fast-paced consumer categories; strong leadership skills required.
- Other info: Be part of a team that values your unique perspective and encourages personal growth.
The predicted salary is between 48000 - 72000 £ per year.
About the Function:
Our Marketing team are creators, helping to build and nurture some of the world's most loved brands. We craft amazing connections with people around the world to celebrate our brands' legacies and reimagine them for the world today, and into the future. Everything we do is underpinned by a deep understanding of our consumers, behaviours, trends, and technologies. Using our genius and creativity, we unlock our brands' uniqueness, understand their purpose, and put them at the heart of celebrations everywhere. Together, we're celebrating diversity and challenging stereotypes through our advertising and marketing. Wherever your talents lie, from Design to Consumer Planning, you'll be celebrated and supported in our inclusive culture.
About the role:
We are entering a new era for Ready-to-Drink (RTD) brands-one that demands pace, creativity, precision, and performance. To lead this transformation, we are excited to introduce the newly created role of Head of Marketing - RTD Brands. This is a rare opportunity for a bold marketing leader to architect and deliver the future of our RTD portfolio in Great Britain. The role is designed to build cultural relevance, consumer recruitment, and commercial growth in one of the most dynamic and high-potential categories in alcohol. You'll drive everything from category strategy and brand building to innovation and execution, working across a complex matrix of local, regional, and global collaborators. The successful candidate will not only have the opportunity to shape brands-they will help reshape the category itself!
Role Responsibilities:
- Category & Brand Strategy: Lead the development of a clear, insight-led RTD category and brand strategy that integrates brand building, innovation, RGM, and commercial execution. Deliver strategic clarity and executional excellence across the full marketing mix-ensuring a sharp consumer focus and commercial return.
- Global & Regional Collaboration: Partner closely with Global Brand Teams and European RTD teams to ensure brand ambitions are met through sufficient MA (Media & Activation) and PA (Promotional Activity) investment. Ensure local consumer needs and recruitment ambitions are reflected in global and regional brand plans.
- Innovation & Pipeline Development: In partnership with Innovation leads and regional partners, define a forward-looking innovation strategy that fuels long-term category growth. Drive an agile and dynamic pipeline that balances scale, speed, and experimentation to win in an evolving market.
- Consumer & Shopper-Centric Leadership: Collaborate with Consumer & Shopper Planning teams to embed customer and consumer centricity into every decision. Act as an inspiring leader on consumer behaviour, cultural relevance, and shopper activation-building intimate, data-driven brand engagement strategies.
- Commercial & P&L Ownership: Support the GB RTD Director in owning and managing the full shadow P&L for RTD brands in GB. Monitor performance drivers, respond to commercial shifts, and partner with commercial teams to deliver growth and profitability targets.
To drive breakthrough growth and elevate the role of RTD within our portfolio, this role will lead several critical transformation areas:
- Redefine the Media Model: Activate marketing to drive impulse purchase and proximity conversion, including in-store media, chillers, weather-based triggers, and smarter digital targeting. Partner with agencies that bring convenience, FMCG, and soft drinks expertise.
- Expand into 3rd Spaces & Outdoor: Establish our presence in key lifestyle-led spaces such as festivals, sampling events, and on-trade environments where RTD moments are discovered and loved.
- Ignite Culture-Led Brand Building: Deepen consumer intimacy and bring brands closer to cultural moments-fuelling advocacy and relevance through music, fashion, social, and grassroots experiences.
- Lead Pack Architecture Strategy: Use shopper insight to create seasonal, occasion-based, and culturally desirable packaging, rallying cross-functional teams (Innovation, Supply, Commercial) to renovate and innovate for impact.
- Elevate Shopper Marketing Capability: Develop new 'black belt' expertise in convenience and retail marketing-leveraging permanent fixtures, chillers, and path-to-purchase solutions to improve conversion.
Experience / skills required:
- 10+ years experience, preferably in RTD, Alc, FMCG or adjacent fast-paced consumer categories.
- Enterprise Leadership: Highly skilled at navigating sophisticated, cross-functional environments and uniting teams behind a common agenda. Able to drive real traction and cut through ambiguity. Comfortable leading sophisticated P&Ls and demonstrating commercial levers to drive performance outcomes.
- Entrepreneurial Attitude: Fast, fearless, and focused on breakthrough. Brings challenger thinking, commercial competence, and a track record of disrupting norms to drive performance.
- People Leader & Capability Builder: Passionate about coaching, upskilling, and creating high-performing teams-particularly in the areas of modern marketing, commercial levers, and consumer engagement.
- Category Transformer: Brings bold thought leadership and creative vision. Able to not just manage brands-but reimagine what's possible for an entire category.
Flexible Working Statement:
Flexibility is key to our success. Talk to us about what flexibility means to you so that you're supported to manage your wellbeing and balance your priorities from day one.
Our purpose is to celebrate life, every day, everywhere. And creating an inclusive culture, where everyone feels valued and that they can belong, is a crucial part of this. We embrace diversity in the broadest possible sense. This means that you'll be welcomed and celebrated for who you are just by being you. You'll be part of and help build and champion an inclusive culture that celebrates people of different gender, ethnicity, ability, age, sexual orientation, social class, educational backgrounds, experiences, mentalities, and more.
Our ambition is to create the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world. Join us and help transform our business as we take our brands to the next level and build new ones as part of shaping the next generation of celebrations for consumers around the world.
Feel inspired? Then this may be the opportunity for you.
If you require a reasonable adjustment, please ensure that you capture this information when you submit your application.
Head of Marketing - RTD (London) employer: North Dakota State University
Contact Detail:
North Dakota State University Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Marketing - RTD (London)
✨Tip Number 1
Familiarise yourself with the latest trends in the Ready-to-Drink (RTD) market. Understanding current consumer preferences and emerging trends will help you demonstrate your expertise during interviews and discussions.
✨Tip Number 2
Network with professionals in the RTD and FMCG sectors. Attend industry events, webinars, or local meetups to connect with potential colleagues and learn more about the challenges and opportunities in the field.
✨Tip Number 3
Showcase your leadership skills by sharing examples of how you've successfully led cross-functional teams in previous roles. Highlighting your ability to unite diverse groups towards a common goal will resonate well with the hiring team.
✨Tip Number 4
Prepare to discuss innovative marketing strategies that you've implemented in the past. Be ready to share specific examples of how you've driven brand growth and consumer engagement, as this role requires a forward-thinking approach.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Marketing - RTD (London)
Some tips for your application 🫡
Understand the Role: Before you start writing your application, make sure you fully understand the responsibilities and requirements of the Head of Marketing - RTD position. Tailor your application to highlight how your experience aligns with their needs.
Showcase Relevant Experience: Emphasise your 10+ years of experience in RTD, FMCG, or similar fast-paced consumer categories. Use specific examples that demonstrate your ability to lead marketing strategies, manage P&Ls, and drive commercial growth.
Highlight Leadership Skills: Since this role requires strong leadership capabilities, be sure to illustrate your experience in coaching and building high-performing teams. Mention any successful projects where you led cross-functional teams to achieve common goals.
Express Your Vision: Convey your entrepreneurial attitude and bold thought leadership in your application. Discuss how you can reimagine the RTD category and bring innovative ideas to the table, showcasing your creative vision for brand building.
How to prepare for a job interview at North Dakota State University
✨Showcase Your Strategic Thinking
As the Head of Marketing for RTD brands, you'll need to demonstrate your ability to develop clear, insight-led strategies. Prepare examples of past experiences where you've successfully led category and brand strategies, focusing on consumer insights and commercial execution.
✨Highlight Collaborative Success
This role requires close collaboration with global and regional teams. Be ready to discuss how you've partnered with cross-functional teams in the past, ensuring that local consumer needs are met while aligning with broader brand ambitions.
✨Demonstrate Innovation Mindset
Innovation is key in this position. Share specific instances where you've driven innovation strategies that resulted in significant growth. Discuss how you balance speed and experimentation to adapt to evolving market trends.
✨Emphasise Consumer-Centric Leadership
The role demands a strong focus on consumer behaviour and cultural relevance. Prepare to talk about how you've built data-driven engagement strategies that resonate with consumers, and how you've led teams to prioritise customer-centric decision-making.