Diageo on the hunt for digital and ecommerce boss for Europe
Diageo is searching for a marketer to spearhead its ecommerce efforts throughout Europe after its former specialist left less than a year into the role.
The Smirnoff maker has an interim in place while it seeks out a full-time replacement for general manager for digital and ecommerce Marco Preda, who joined last January.
A spokeswoman for Diageo said: “We can confirm that Marco Preda has left his position as general manager for digital and ecommerce for Diageo Europe. We will be announcing his replacement in due course.”
It’s the latest development in Diageo’s bid to better fit its brands into the way people behave online, with chief executive Ivan Menzes outlining the approach last summer. Ecommerce is a key part of those plans as evidenced by the appointment of Mullen Lowe Group last September as its first ecommerce specialist agency.
The arrival of a specialist shop marks a step change in Diageo's plans for direct selling following tests spanning online stores and shoppable YouTube videos over the last 18 months. While it’ still early days, Diageo’s ecommerce push reflects a wider trend among FMCG firms – faced with slowing growth – to seek out alternative ways of generating sales. Pernod Ricard, Unilever and Mondelez all talked up their plans in 2015, though have been careful to downplay any potential impact on their relations with supermarkets.
Experts at this year’s CES tipped the dawning reality of a world where every connected device could trigger a sale as one of the key factors in allowing FMCG firms to direct sale at scale.