McBride quits Bass to rejoin Colgateä SBHD:

Bass Brewers has lost marketing director Sémus McBride, who left last week to return to his former company Colgate-Palmolive. He has been replaced by Mark Hunter, who joined Bass in 1989 and has worked as brand director for Tennent’s in Scotland and most recent-ly as brand director for Carling. McBride will be vice-president of marketing for Europe, based at Colgate’s Paris office. He leaves after four years as marketing director for Bass Brewers, where he oversaw a number of crucial changes. The most notable was the shift of the company away from pub estate distribution towards a strongly brand-led image. Under his stewardship, Bass has launched two new sectors in the UK alcoholic drinks market – “cream-flow ales”, which were developed with the launch of Caffrey’s Irish Ale; and alcopops, with the launch of Hooper’s Hooch. Sources close to the company suggest McBride has left because he felt there were no more senior jobs at Bass which could fulfil his ambitions. He joined Bass in January 1994 from Colgate, where he was European oral care general manager (MW September 10 1993).

News Analysis, page 18