Profile: Preparing for Wimbledon - Richard Collins, director of brands marketing, Britvic

by Nicola Clark, Marketing 28-Jun-06

Wimbledon signals the start of not only the British summertime, but also the most competitive and important months for the soft-drink companies. With Coke Zero, Coca-Cola's rival to Britvic's Pepsi Max, hitting the shelves this month, the battle for supremacy is set to be fierce - but Richard Collins is taking it all in his stride. 'I wake up with a smile every morning knowing I am going into battle with the world's biggest marketing machine,' he jokes.

Collins, who joined Britvic in 2002, is known among his colleagues as
fiercely intelligent and particularly passionate about his brands. 'As a
kid I loved Tango, and the slap advertising was what got me interested

in the whole idea of marketing in the first place,' he says.

Johnny Hornby, managing partner at Clemmow Hornby Inge, which creates
the advertising for Britvic brands including Tango, says Collins'
strength is his love of bold creative work. The recent Tango Clear viral
campaign - a spoof of the Sony Bravia 'balls' ad in which oranges,
lemons, apples and watermelons are fired down a steep street, denting
cars and smashing windows en route - reached 2m unique users.

Collins is equally passionate about squash brand Robinsons, and is a
keen advocate of its Wimbledon sponsorship, which hit the headlines last
month when Britvic unveiled an ad featuring Tim Henman and Andy Murray.
'As a young brand manager, (when you take on a brand) the temptation is
to pull apart its existing associations, but we did a full sponsorship
review of Robinsons and it continues to deliver for us,' he says.

According to Collins, the brand's association with Wimbledon is a vital
part of the Robinsons tradition. 'Barley Water was actually invented in
the men's changing rooms at Wimbledon in 1928, and in many ways it is
the first sports drink,' he says.

Collins secured his first marketing position on the graduate scheme at
Unilever, where he worked for 10 years on brands including Bachelors
instant soups and Fray Bentos. He then moved to drinks giant Seagram,
where he became global marketing director for the rum category, which
included the Captain Morgan brand.

It is clear that Collins enjoyed the scope of his global role, and he
spent five years in the US. However, the jet-set lifestyle took its toll
on family life and, although he says he would like to 'go global' again
at some point, he is now settled in his role at Britvic's Chelmsford
headquarters.

'Brand marketing these days is often about running things in
geographically specific locations,' he says. 'At Britvic the lines of
approval are clear, and you feel as though you are making a genuine
difference to the company.'

His background in food and alcohol marketing has ensured that Collins is
well versed in the political and social sensitivities facing the food
and drink industry. 'From a portfolio point of view, we are focused on
providing choice,' he says, adding that 'there is nothing in our
portfolio that I am not totally comfortable with'. As a father to two
young sons, he believes transparency is essential and front-of-pack
nutrition labelling on drinks is inevitable.

Sources believe that US sports drink brand Gatorade, which Britvic
distributes in the UK, will be the next big story from the business. It
is clear that sports fanatic Collins has high hopes for the brand, which
is the official sports drink of the England football team. 'Gatorade is
the world's biggest sports drink and it's a challenger brand in the UK
market, where we are looking at a long-term investment,' he
explains.

There is plenty more innovation to come from Britvic. 'Tango Clear took
just 11 months from conception to the shelves, while Fruit Shoot H20
took eight months. (With that pace of development,) we have a
competitive advantage,' explains Collins.

It will also be a big year for Collins personally. Born in 1966, he is
hoping for an England World Cup win as a 40th birthday present - or,
failing that, a solid showing by Henman at Wimbledon.

CAREER HISTORY

1987-1994: Various marketing roles, including senior brand manager for
Batchelors food and brand manager for Batchelors instant soups,
Unilever

1994-1996: Global marketing manager, Scotch whisky, Joseph E Seagram &
Sons

1996-1997: Global marketing re-engineering team, Seagram

1997-1998: Category brand manager, North American Whiskey, Seagram
USA

1998-1999: Category brand manager, rum, Seagram USA

1999-2002: Global marketing director, rum, Seagram

Oct 2002-present: Director of brands marketing, Britvic.