Mars Petcare brings in first global marketing chief since 2019

Mars has created the new role of chief brand and experience officer for its Petcare division, which owns a range of pet food brands, including Whiskas and Pedigree, as well as veterinary services brands Linnaeus and Banfield.

The role has gone to Najoh Tita-Reid, who is currently chief marketing officer at computer peripherals company Logitech. Tita-Reid will join on 20 November and be responsible for creating a seamless brand and consumer experience across Mars Petcare’s brands and services.

At Logitech she led worldwide marketing, brand equity, creative, branded and direct-to-consumer ecommerce sites, and marketing transformation across 120 countries. She has also worked at Bayer, Merck, GlobalHue and Procter & Gamble.

Mars Petcare has not had a marketing chief since 2019, when Leonid Sudakov moved after six years in the CMO role to run its digital content and services business Kinship. Since then individual business units within Mars Petcare have led their own marketing efforts.

Tita-Reid will now report to Sudakov, who was promoted in March to president of growth, digital and platforms and handed the task of leading growth through new models of consumer engagement.

Sudakov said: “Najoh is an exceptional marketer and globally recognised leader, known for building strong, diverse and inclusive teams. She will bring her broad and impressive experience across tech, healthcare and consumer goods to help us scale our impact and accelerate our digital transformation, allowing us to better meet the needs of pet owners and transform the experience of pet ownership."

Campaign US named her in its annual CMO 50 list of 50 marketers setting the bar and changing the game last year, writing that “since joining Logitech as global CMO in April 2021, she has helped transform what was known as a stodgy gadget manufacturer into a fixture in streaming and influencer marketing”.

She said: “I am thrilled to join Mars Petcare at such a pivotal moment, to help lead the next phase of growth. It is a business I have long admired for its inspiring purpose, great people and amazing brands – and it has already proven that incumbents can innovate, transform, and grow. I’m looking forward to joining the team to help solve the everyday challenges facing pet owners.”