Ex-McVitie’s boss McComas goes to Kwik Save to take on brand role

Kwik Save has appointed former McVitie’s UK marketing director Gill McComas as brand director. She replaces former Superdrug marketing chief Steven Round, who has held the post on a temporary basis since July.

McComas says: “Kwik Save was one of the rare brands in the retail market which had a truly distinctive position that drove considerable sales. I am very much looking forward to the challenge of transforming the Kwik Save brand and store offering to recapture that success.”

McComas, who will report to Kwik Save managing director Graham Maguire, was UK marketing director for McVitie’s from 1997 to 1998, overseeing the launch of the Go Ahead brand before being made group innovation director in 1998. More recently she was managing partner of brand consultancy Silver Fin.

Kwik Save uses the same agencies, McCann-Erickson and Universal McCann, as sister supermarket chain Somerfield.

The supermarket, which does not have an ownlabel range, is focused on offering big brands, such as Kellogg, at the lowest prices as well as providing consumers with tertiary brands, such as Crawfords, and value brands.

Kwik Save is part of the Somerfield Group, which posted pre-tax profits of £22.2m for the year ending April 27 after a loss of more than £12m the previous year. Total sales were £4.6bn, up from £4.5bn the year before.