Goldfish names ex-Lloyds TSB marketer as marketing director

Goldfish, the credit card brand due to relaunch later this year, has appointed former Lloyds TSB marketer Martin White as marketing director.

It follows the departure of Patrick Muir, marketing director of Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking UK, who left the bank earlier this summer after its card operation, including Goldfish, was spun off into Discover Financial Services earlier this summer (MW July 26).

White has a strong background in data and direct marketing, and is understood to have been brought in to boost Goldfish’s performance in data and analytics.

It is thought that Discover is keen to build Goldfish’s customer profile and insight, as it has been “neglected” as a brand for several years, but retains a strong brand identity.

Goldfish is thought to be differentiating itself in the cluttered card market with a rewards-heavy offering, with discounts and offers from stores including Boots, Debenhams and Marks & Spencer. Insurance and loan products will also be offered under the Goldfish brand.

Morgan Stanley bought Goldfish from high street bank Lloyds TSB in February 2006, appointing Grey London to handle a £50m throughthe-line relaunch (MW February 23, 2006). It was postponed while the division was spun off

The Goldfish brand was launched in 1996 by Centrica, then acquired by British Gas and Lloyds in a joint venture, but Lloyds bought the utility company out in 2003. It was relaunched in 2002 with a major advertising campaign, but has received little investment since.

White is a former head of co-branding at affinity card firm Accucard, which was bought by Lloyds TSB in 2002 and merged with its existing card operations to form Create Services. Create was later scrapped, following the sale of Goldfish.