Neal to head More division in Scotland

Andy Neal, the former consumer marketing director of spirits business United Distillers UK, is to head a new Scottish division of poster company the More Group.

Neal lost out in the creation of Diageo, the merger of United Distillers’ parent company Guinness and IDV’s parent Grand Metropolitan, when his counterpart at IDV was put in charge of marketing for the combined operation (MW April 9). He was offered global brand management roles in UDV, the new company, but he turned them down.

Neal was responsible for the disposal of UD’s Perth offices, after it was decided the UDV marketing department would be based in Essex.

His new boss, More Group GB managing director Peter Smyth, says: “Scotland is big enough to warrant someone there 24-hours a day and not managing the business remotely from London. It will not fulfil its potential if we handle it from London.”

Roger Parry, More Group chief executive, says: “He will effectively be running his own company.”

One of Neal’s first challenges will be to tender for the Strathclyde street furniture contract, which includes Glasgow, and one of the biggest contracts in the UK.

Meanwhile Adshel, the street furniture division of More Group’s parent Clear Channel International, has been awarded a multimillion dollar contract to build and operate 1,200 posters in New York.

Fifty per cent of the panels will be located in Manhattan, with the rest spread through Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx.

More Group had lobbied hard for the massive New York street furniture contract, which includes panels on bus shelters and litter bins, but the contract has been postponed indefinitely. Parry says: “My appetite for the street furniture contract is much reduced after winning this latest one.”