Ad champion Bellini departs Tesco
Ad Association president is leaving
Just when the ad industry seemed to have found a rare champion in the upper echelons of a big company, whoosh! They’re gone.
Advertising Association president Alessandra Bellini (below), chief customer officer of Tesco, is on her way, to be succeeded at Tesco by chief commercial officer Ashwin Prasad, who takes on both roles.
Prasad, who began at Mars, is clearly a rising star in the company but one doubts that customer-friendly marketing is top of his agenda. Like the rest of Tesco’s management it will be all about doubling down on price – mostly via Clubcard – and keeping the City satisfied. Alarm bells may be ringing at agency BBH which has delivered one of the few consistent retail ad campaigns of recent years, ‘Food Love Stories.’
Bellini says: “My Tesco journey has been intense, challenging and a lot of fun. I’m proud that we’ve delivered a successful turnaround and growth strategy, but after nearly seven years it’s time to refresh and take on something new.”
Good luck to her. But it’s another blow for adland’s waning (possibly waned) access to the big client C-suite.
