Innovation strategy & development

Over 17 years across MULTIPLE brands & major markets globally

An innovation leader with rich creative, development, and strategy expertise. Below is some of the innovation work I've led: examples of my consumer facing propositions across markets, categories and strategic objectives. For my less consumer facing strategy work - check out my profile on LinkedIn.

Michiru | china / asia

2019 : Beauty - Hair Care

New to world brand creation to land disruptive technology in a cluttered Asian beauty market. Developed brand positioning and purpose as part of innovation consultancy work.

Skinsei | USA

2017 : Beauty - Skin Care

New business model creation through a new-to-world digitally enabled brand & product, operated with agile ways of working. Developed through Lean Startup principles as an MVP pilot. 

JOHNNIE WALKER | GLOBAL

2024 : Spirits - Whisky

Breakthrough packaging capability delivering personalisation at scale. Creating a new scaleable limited edition model leveraging variable digital print and generative AI.

Powering collectible product personalization at scale with generative AI

 

Johnnie Walker, the world's number one whisky, has consistently pushed boundaries in product innovation. The opportunity was to bring together the power of variable digital print and generative AI to solve for people’s desires for collecting one-of-a-kind products that speak to their taste and personality, re-imagining hoe people could experience the brand through personalization at scale.

 

 

The work: 

'Project Vision' is a new Diageo Innovation capability that enables manufacturing of one-of-a-kind collectible packaging. In this breakthrough pilot, Johnnie Walker partnered with celebrated German illustrator Andy Gellenberg to create 50 original seed images in his distinctive pop art style, which were enhanced using generative AI to scale up to 5000 collectible variations. Each bottle features a silhouette of an individual, reflecting the diverse faces of the modern whisky consumer and enabling each consumer to choose a product that is entirely original, relevant, and reflective of their personal style.

The role: 

Original project conception and team orchestration. Team partnered with Diageo Packaging R&D, supply, and procurement as well as industry leaders in AI, pre-press, and digital print, to bring this capability to life with a clear path to scale. This pilot launch in Germany builds on a wider global platform on pack personalisation across the Luxury and Digital breakthrough innovation agendas.

PARTNERS

Digital Print - PSL GmbH

Brand & Packaging Design - Bulletproof

Pre-press - Hybrid Software

A disruptive proposition & business model for Unilever

 

Skinsei is a new Unilever brand developed with a small entrepreneurial team. It's a personalized monthly skin care subscription tailored to a user's skin, lifestyle and environment (based on a holistic diagnostic) operated with a Digital and Direct-to-consumer model.

 
 

The role: 

Global project leader - leading a cross functional team, owning the brand and business model, as well as being a key contributor to the consumer journey : from acquisition to conversion and retention. In addition to this, as part of managing a lean brand team in beta, personally delivered majority of the creative assets for social and advertising channels. 

THE WORK:

Public beta launch developed as a Silicon Valley style minimum viable product, taking learnings off Unilever’s other acquisitions in the digital native brand space such as Dollar Shave Club. 

www.skinsei.com (post-beta site)

 
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Skinsei works through a quick online assessment and skin patch to assess your skin, lifestyle and environment. Once complete, users get their own (1) holistic diagnostic. It shows them their Climate, UV, Air Quality, Exercise, Sleep and Skin. An ove…

Skinsei works through a quick online assessment and skin patch to assess your skin, lifestyle and environment. Once complete, users get their own (1) holistic diagnostic. It shows them their Climate, UV, Air Quality, Exercise, Sleep and Skin. An overall picture of how they're doing this month. They can read about (2) their key focus areas this month, how they're doing, how SKINSEI supports them, and what they can do. Depending on their holistic diagnostic results, (3) five products are selected out of dozens to match their specific needs for the month.

 
“this is using the latest thinking in business models - direct to consumer, diagnostic driven, subscription, completely personalized”
— Alan Jope, President - Personal Care, Unilever Investor Event 2017
 

PARTNERS

Brand & Packaging Design - JDO

Digital Journey + Site Design - R/GA London

Brand Planning - BBH London

A distinctively crafted brand to land leading edge technology

 

Michiru is a new Unilever brand for Greater Asia & China developed with a premium anti-hairfall positioning, crafted in Japan with clinically proven technology. The range progressively repairs fragile hair from the inside out, for hair that is as full as one’s life.

 
 

The role: 

Innovation Consulting - crafting brand idea and positioning, partner selection and brand development.

THE WORK:

New brand launch in Asia across multiple markets, with a focus on China eCommerce. Landing a disruptive, premium positioning in a cluttered hair care space to deploy leading edge technology backed by 50 years of research on hair and scalp biology.

Michiru (Instagram)

 
 
 

PARTNERS

Brand & Content - Green Park Content

A new premium platform for oral care in Europe

 

Unilever Oral Care has a leading position in key European markets (chiefly France & Italy). In the last decade, a strong premium leg has been built through its whitening platform under the White Now sub-brand of toothpaste. The identified brand opportunity was to extend this strength to toothbrushes. 

 

 

The role: 

Global project leader - including concept and product development. Managing a team across 4 countries to create & deliver the platform innovation for Unilever Oral Care’s footprint in developed markets. Leading creative development for both product design and communication.    

The work: 

Relaunch of its already successful whitening toothbrush + launch of 2 new on-trend upgraded variants to complete the assortment (anti-bac & charcoal). Delivered in record time, with a new launch model leveraging platform alignment with the more established toothpaste leg of the business.

Signal France (Brand website)

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PARTNERS

Industrial Design - Design Group Italia + Ponzini SPA

2D Packaging Design - Crepuscule Paris

Film - Zorba Paris + Mazarine Paris