Green Rewards, the start-up green loyalty business, has appointed a managing director from Procter & Gamble after recruiting a chairman from Unilever.
Stephen Carson joins the company this month from his role as business unit leader and associate marketing director for the Gillette, Braun and Duracell brands in southern central Europe.
“Stephen brings a wealth of experience of brand development and commercial management and is a major addition to our team,” said Green Rewards’ chairman, Andrew Seth, who was chief executive of Lever UK until 1995.
Carson joins the business as it prepares for a consumer launch in late spring. Described as the UK’s “first all-green loyalty programme”, Green Rewards offers a range of green products, experiences and charity gifts which can be redeemed for points or a combination of points and cash.
“The fusion of green with commerce is one of the most exciting places to be in business at this moment, and Green Rewards has all the credentials to be a major player in this area,” said Carson. “A loyalty programme that rewards consumer behaviour with green incentives is a strong draw compared to other offerings, and I’m very much looking forward to being part of its success.”
South African-born Carson worked for the Gillette company from 2000 in Africa and the Middle East and then, since its acquisition, for Procter and Gamble in Europe. He was previously at leading South African FMCG and foodservice business National Brands.
Seth worked in marketing for Unilever from the 1960s until his early retirement in 1995. He was a marketing manager in the UK and USA, marketing director in Mexico, Switzerland and the UK, and, in the 1980s, he was executive vice president for marketing at Lever USA, developing brands like Dove in the USA and Persil in the UK. He was a general manager in Lever Europe and finally chief executive of flagship company Lever UK from 1992 to 1995.
Following more than 30 years as a brand supplier to the major retailers, he engaged in strategic business consultancy as chairman of the worldwide Added Value group, focusing his interests on retailing and retail companies.
He co-authored The Grocers in 1999, a study of the UK supermarket industry, with business school academic Geoffrey Randall, and Supermarket Wars, an examination of the global retail industry, in 2005.