Manor Bakeries hands Ursell senior position
Manor Bakeries has promoted senior product manager Karen Ursell to general manager of marketing, the top marketing post in the company.
The company makes pies and cakes under the Mr Kipling Cakes and Cadbury’s Cakes brands.
Ursell replaces Richard Moss, who has left the company to become marketing director of PR agency The Rowland Company. Ursell will report to managing director Gordon Plews.
Ursell joined Manor Bakeries three years ago. Prior to that she worked for cigarette manufacturer RJ Reynolds as a UK product manager, overseeing brands such as Dorchester, More, and Salem. Ursell has also worked in the Gillette UK marketing department and had responsibilities in the male toiletries portfolio.
Manor Bakeries’ 5m advertising account is handled by Mellors Reay, which merged with its parent agency Grey last October.
The company has attempted to modernise the image of its older brands, including Mr Kipling.
Last December,it launched a campaign for the brand’s Fruit Pies and Cake Bites which featured a modern family, rather than one which harked back to a bygone era.
Manor Bakeries is part of the industrial conglomerate Tomkins, which owns companies as diverse as handgun manufacturer Smith & Wesson, and food group Ranks Hovis McDougall.
