LISA MCNIVEN, Brand Manager for Ted Baker
Lisa McNiven is KMI Brands Brand Manager, working specifically on Ted Baker beauty and indulgent bathing in Boots. From the age of 13 she’s wanted to work in marketing and has worked for brands such as IKEA, Trevor Sorbie and The Body Shop before joining KMI.
Hi Lisa, tell us what a typical morning is like in the life of a Brand Manager at KMI?
I usually arrive at the office before 8am so I can grab a quick coffee before checking emails. No two days are the same here at KMI however Monday mornings are usually more commercially focused. I’m responsible for reviewing sales of the Ted Baker indulgent bathing range in Boots and analysing the performance for the upcoming month.
I’m currently working on a Ted Baker gifting range that will launch in May 2020 so if I’m in the office I’ll have quick catch up with the Project Manager here at KMI to make sure we’re aligned on our upcoming deadlines. Throughout the day I have several phone calls with the brand, product development, commercial and marketing teams at Boots which is always exciting as we’re all working together to deliver new and innovative products for customers.
How would you spend the rest of your day?
The KMI office is in Teddington so I try to go out running twice a week in my lunch break around the gorgeous Bushy Park, often bumping into the local deer. Once I’ve finished my run and freshened up I’ll go back to my desk and review product samples that have been delivered from Boots. I’ll check the fragrances, test the products and share these samples with the girls in the office to get their opinion. I think market research is invaluable so I always love to hear what my colleagues think.
What about the days you spend out of the office?
Thursdays are my favourite days as I meet with the Head of Creative Licensing at Ted Baker. We will review new product formulations, designs, packaging – basically anything and everything that has the Ted Baker logo on and will be going into Boots, we review. We meet at Ted Baker’s head office, the Ugly Brown Building in Kentish Town which has a huge lobster painted on the front door and lifts that sing to you. My meetings at Ted Baker are really productive and there are always lots of actions for me and teams to follow up on. After my Ted meeting I’ll call my contacts at Boots to update them on the next steps of development.
What do you do to unwind after a busy day at work?
I love sport and exercise so I usually go to a spinning class at the gym or netball training after work. On the way home I’ll look on Instagram or Pinterest for some inspiration for dinner and then pop into a local shop to pick up some ingredients for a yummy dinner… and maybe a wee pudding too!
What do you love most about your job?
Every day is so different and I get to do some amazing things like my recent trip to China to review and approve packaging for my latest project. It was incredible visiting the factories and meeting the people who make our products. If it wasn’t for them, my ideas would never come into fruition so it was fantastic to see the production process. The food was delicious!
I loved attending the Glamour Beauty Festival in March which was in partnership with Boots. I’m always on the look out for inspiration and seeing what’s new in the makeup and toiletries market. There were some fantastic beauty brands there and I also attended a talk called Beauty, Feminsim and Empowerment hosted by Glamour’s Editor in Chief, Deborah Joseph, singer Raye and author Scarlett Curtis.
