Avis poaches Frito-Lay boss to head Euro drive

Avis Europe has hired Susan Hooper, Frito-Lay regional director for Europe, Africa and the Middle East, as vice-president of marketing and sales. Hooper joins the car hire company after two years managing the snacks business for Frito-Lay Europe. She will report to chief executive Mark McCafferty. One of her main tasks is expected to be the establishment of Avis’s e-commerce division. She replaces Michael White, who was made vice president and general manager, corporate countries – the markets where Avis owns the car hire operation rather than just leasing its name – as part of a recent restructure. He will also manage Three Arrows, Avis’ replacement car company for customers whose own cars have been damaged in a crash. Hooper says: “Avis is by far the leading car hire company in the region and its name is well-known. But it does not have the emotional support of a brand such as Walkers, for example. The aim will be to make it a more meaningful brand to solidify that number one position.” Hooper has worked for PepsiCo International for the past eight years, setting up and managing businesses first for its beverages division and then Frito-Lay, its crisps and snacks arm. After a stint as managing director of Frito-Lay Poland, she was hired by Martin Glenn – now president of Walkers Snack Foods – to join a central team of directors responsible for setting Frito-Lay’s strategy. Before PepsiCo, Hooper worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Co and before that she worked for advertising agencies Benton & Bowles, Young & Rubicam and Saatchi & Saatchi.