Eurostar picks marketing head as Howard departs

Eurostar head of marketing Joanna Howard is leaving the company. She will be replaced by communications manager Greg Nugent.

Howard, who started at Eurostar as a marketing manager, is going to an as yet unknown travel company.

Nugent joined Eurostar last year and is a former marketer at GlaxoSmithKline Nutritional Healthcare, where he held the titles of group brand manager and brand manager for Weetabix.

He reports to commercial director Nick Mercer, the former Air Miles marketing director, who took up the post in March 2003 after a restructure that resulted in the departure of marketing director Bertrand Guillon.

Eurostar’s advertising is handled by TBWA/London and it spent &£4.5m on advertising for the year to December (Nielsen Media Research). Last year the agency created a “Fly Eurostar” outdoor, radio and online campaign to accompany the opening of the high-speed stage of the Channel Tunnel railway link and the introduction of Philippe Starck-designed carriages (MW May 29, 2003). The link cut journey times to Paris to two hours and 35 minutes and the campaign, which is being repeated, was aimed at passengers using low-cost airlines. Eurostar claims to have enjoyed 66 per cent of the London to Paris air/rail market for December.