Wedgwood appoints former Camelot marketer

Wedgwood, the bone china manufacturer, has recruited a former National Lottery marketer as its marketing director for Europe.

Laura Hicken started at Wedgwood this week. Hicken was, until a year ago, marketing controller at Camelot, responsible for strategic development and marketing for all the National Lottery’s brands.

She replaces Samantha Jeffrey, who left a month ago. It is understood that Jeffrey left because her husband had relocated to the South-east of England.

Hicken says her first task at Wedgwood will be to review all the company’s advertising and marketing, although she adds that it is “too early to say whether we will have any formal pitch process”.

The marketing budget will be significantly increased, but Hicken is unwilling to discuss exact figures. Last year, Wedgwood spent £200,000 on its general china range and £80,000 on its Jasper Conran range. Media buying was by Media Planning Group, but there is no creative agency of record.

Wedgwood is part of the Waterford Wedgwood group. It recently appointed branding consultancy FutureBrand to leverage its “Britishness” out of its traditional core china and tableware into general home-style products, such as home furnishings. It employs the Duchess of York as its “brand ambassador” in the US. However, the company has been embarrassed by recent revelations that it has been manufacturing some of its product ranges in the Far East, marring its British brand positioning.