Greggs appoints ex-GNER chief

The retail bakery chain Greggs has recruited Great North Eastern Railways marketer Scott Jefferson as its first group marketing director.

Jefferson moves to the newly created position at Newcastle-based Greggs from the role of marketing controller at GNER. He will also oversee the Bakers Oven brand, which accounts for a fifth of the company’s outlets.

The position was created following the departure of Greggs head of marketing Judith Olsen in January (MW January 22). The new position includes responsibility for brand communications and new product development.

Olsen appointed RPM3 to handle Greggs’ advertising after a pitch against J Walter Thompson, Robson Brown and bds beechwood in 2002, which was handled by the AAR (MW May 16, 2002). The company has spent nearly &£1m on advertising in the year to June and launched its first television campaign in April with the strapline “It’s the way we bake it that makes it” (MW April 15).

Jefferson was involved in the GNER pitch. Heresy and Vallance Carruthers Coleman Priest were appointed to handle advertising on a project basis in March. The franchise ends in April next year.

Greggs began as a family bakery on Tyneside and has more than 1,242 outlets nationwide. It reported a 10.6 per cent rise in profits to &£13.6m last month on a turnover of &£216m for the first half of the year. It attributed some of this to its marketing campaign.