We delve into the licensing life of Kinnerton’s marketing director.
Rachel Wyatt
Marketing director, Kinnerton Confectionery
My route into the licensing industry went something like this…
I started my career as a buyer at Woolworths, buying a number of categories from stationery to toiletries ending my time at Woolworths as a senior toy buyer. It was Woolworths that introduced me to the world of licensed consumer goods and the journey began. I moved from Woolworths to Kinnerton many years ago as marketing manager responsible for licensing in and range development, and as Kinnerton has grown and become more successful so has my role. I am now marketing director – still responsible for licensing, along with a much more strategic and people role internally.
How many years in the industry?
Shhhhh, 23 years+…
When I was growing up, I had no idea licensing was an industry so I wanted to be…
Wonder Woman – I was her biggest fan.
The deal I am most proud of is…
I have made many deals over the last 16 years so feel it’s very tricky to answer this. However, I think stretching our business beyond children’s licensing and transforming the business through our international deal with Unilever to take Magnum Ice-cream into chocolate.
My most interesting experience in licensing has been…
Too many to mention – continuously meeting new people, learning, networking, discovering a gem from time to time.
The best piece of advice I’ve ever received is…
Retail is detail and always answer a ringing phone.
If I wasn’t in licensing, I would be…
Back in retail I suspect.
Who do you admire most in the industry (and why)?
Licensors who understand the categories they want to trade in, who use proper insight to make proper strategic decisions about their brands. Truth and realism.
In a film of your life, which licensed character would play you?
This is a really tricky one. Do you go funny? Do you go comical? Let’s go funny – Cruella De Vil… I think that’s what some licensors might think.
If I could change anything about the industry, it would be…
One size does not fit all. Some brands simply don’t translate to all categories – sometimes this foresight gets missed.
