Head of Marketing - Retail in London

The Head of Marketing is responsible for leading and shaping the marketing strategy for Lagardère Travel Retail UK & Ireland, driving commercial growth, strengthening our market-leading position and enhancing customer engagement across our expanding retail portfolio. As the senior marketing leader for the UK & Ireland business, you will develop and execute integrated B2B and B2C marketing strategies that support commercial objectives, strengthen key relationships with airports, landlords and brand partners, and deliver measurable business performance. This is a strategic leadership role focused on direction-setting, relationship building and ensuring marketing drives commercial outcomes across the business. Working closely with the UK Executive team and global marketing teams in Paris, you will ensure marketing is positioned as a key commercial growth driver while building a high-performing marketing function capable of supporting the business as it expands.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership & Direction
  • Develop and own the UK & Ireland marketing strategy aligned with wider commercial and business objectives; communicate strategy clearly to internal and external stakeholders.
  • Lead the evolution of the Lagardère Travel Retail brand across the UK & Ireland portfolio; define brand positioning and ensure consistent execution across touchpoints.
  • Set strategic priorities for the marketing function; define annual marketing objectives, KPIs and investment focus areas.
  • Identify emerging opportunities in marketing, technology and consumer trends to maintain competitive advantage and inform investment decisions.
  • Challenge and improve marketing effectiveness; establish reporting frameworks to measure marketing ROI, commercial impact and customer outcomes.
• Commercial Partnership & Growth
  • Act as senior marketing advisor to the Commercial Director and Executive Leadership team on business development, tender submissions and contract renewals.
  • Build and maintain strategic relationships with key airports, landlords and global brand partners; represent UK business as trusted marketing partner.
  • Shape marketing propositions that strengthen partnerships and create competitive advantage in new business opportunities.
  • Partner with Commercial, Buying, Operations and Finance to ensure marketing strategy supports revenue growth, customer acquisition and profitability across all business lines.
  • Collaborate with global teams in Paris to leverage best practice, innovation and global campaigns while tailoring for UK & Ireland market.
• Brand & Customer Strategy
  • Lead strategy development for integrated marketing across Retail, Duty Free and Foodservice; ensure customer insight informs all strategic decisions.
  • Oversee digital marketing strategy, CRM roadmap, content strategy, social media and website performance; approve major digital initiatives.
  • Set brand standards for all customer touchpoints; establish governance to ensure premium execution and brand consistency.
  • Approve all major marketing initiatives including new store openings, refurbishments, brand activations and seasonal campaigns.
  • Drive data-led decision making culture; champion customer insight and analytics as foundation for strategy.
• Corporate Communications & External Relations
  • Lead corporate communications for the UK & Ireland business; own internal and external messaging.
  • Oversee corporate website, LinkedIn and corporate leadership.
  • Manage media relations and press releases; build media relationships for leadership opportunities.
  • Support executive communications and key business announcements.
• Leadership, Capability & Team Development
  • Lead and develop the UK marketing team (Marketing Manager and Marketing Executive); create high-performing, collaborative culture.
  • Set clear objectives, performance measures and development plans for direct reports; provide coaching and mentoring.
  • Build marketing capability across the organisation through cross-functional collaboration and knowledge sharing.
  • Identify resource and capability gaps as the business grows; make recruitment and development recommendations.
  • Model commercial mindset and strategic thinking across all decisions.
• Budget, Governance & Performance
  • Own annual marketing budget and investment strategy; allocate resources to maximise commercial return and brand impact.
  • Establish governance and approval processes for marketing activities; ensure compliance with brand standards and legal requirements.
  • Monitor overall marketing performance against KPIs; review campaign effectiveness and ROI.
  • Supplier and agency oversight; select and manage strategic agency relationships; establish performance standards.

Skills & Experience:

• Significant experience (7+ years) in a senior marketing leadership role within retail, travel retail, hospitality or customer-focused business.
• Proven track record of developing and owning marketing strategy that drives measurable commercial growth.
• Strategic thinking with strong commercial acumen; ability to translate customer insight and market trends into business growth opportunities.
• Experience managing and developing marketing teams; track record of building high-performing functions.
• Strong stakeholder and relationship management skills with confidence to influence senior leaders, external partners and Board-level executives.
• Experience managing agency partnerships and marketing budgets of significant scale (£500k+).
• Strong analytical skills with ability to measure marketing performance, ROI and business impact.
• Experience supporting business development, tender submissions or new market entry.
• Travel retail or airport/hospitality sector experience.
• Experience in matrix or international organisations.
• MBA or postgraduate marketing qualification.
• Direct experience launching and scaling brands in competitive markets.