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Woolworths has named Ken Lewis as its new board-level marketing

director after a six-week search to replace Alan McWalter, who left to

become marketing chief at Marks & Spencer.

Lewis, currently managing director of Kingfisher’s video, entertainment

and music store chain, MVC, will take up the post next year. His

replacement has yet to be announced.

Lewis, 47, has been with Kingfisher for 14 years, holding senior

commercial and marketing roles at both Woolworths’ and Kingfisher’s

distribution arm, Entertainment UK, before joining MVC in January 1996.

His career has involved helping Kingfisher acquire full control of MVC

from its founders, Gary Nesbitt and Michael Isaacs, who founded MVC as a

joint venture with Kingfisher in 1991.

During Lewis’ time at MVC, the chain has grown from 16 to nearly 80

stores nationwide, and is looking to expand into Europe.

Although he was managing director, Lewis also played a key role in

marketing at MVC, appointing agency Roose & Partners to create its first

major ad campaign and also setting up a database to track shoppers’

habits.

At Woolworths, Lewis takes charge of a pounds 20m advertising budget. It

currently employs Bates UK and Zenith Media. New Woolworths developments

include its move into interactive television through Open, and into

direct sales through the Woolworths Direct catalogue.

At the end of this month, it will unveil plans for an e-commerce site,

selling up to 350 products, including entertainment and toys.

Clive Vaughan, head of consulting at Retail Intelligence, said that

Woolworths has managed to position itself as a successful housewares and

children’s retailer in the past couple of years. He believes that ’the

main challenge for a new Woolworths marketer is to look at making the

stores more of a destination’.