The Very Group poaches Head of Retail Media at Superdrug

The Very Group has appointed Paul Stafford as Head of Retail Media at Very Media Group to further strengthen its senior leadership team.

Stafford joins from Superdrug, where he has been for almost four and a half years, most recently also as Head of Retail Media. He was instrumental in launching the retailer’s media network, Optimo.

Bringing with him over 18 years of experience across both brand and digital marketing and retail media, Stafford has also previously had roles at PepsiCo and Virgin Media.

He will now be the driving force behind Very Media Group’s next stage of growth, responsible for shaping the retail media network’s long-term strategy while enhancing existing relationships with brands and establishing new strategic partnerships that align with Very Media Group’s ambition of being “the multi-category retail media network of choice for brands”.

Very Media Group, which launched in partnership with SMG in 2024, is a reimagining of The Very Group’s existing retail media proposition. It brings together the online retailer’s in-house creative capabilities and combination of personal, shopping and financial data “to create insights-led campaigns for some of the biggest household brands”.

Stafford’s appointment comes as Very Media Group launches Very iD - designed to power smarter, more effective marketing campaigns and support brand partners in creating campaigns “which resonate with their target audience” and drive return on investment.

Jessica Myers, Chief Customer Officer at The Very Group, said: “We’ve been operating the retail media space for over 12 years, so we’re building on strong foundations. The appointment of Paul comes at an exciting time.

“Not only will he bolster our senior leadership team to take Very Media Group to new heights, but he’ll be working closely with our outstanding team to offer brand partners even more success in their campaigns through our new enhanced first party data solution, Very iD.”

Stafford added: “Very’s bold marketing activity and purpose of helping families get more out of life really stood out to me. It’s a challenger brand that’s embracing retail media and has a data first approach to customer success.

“It has a long history in the space and I’m looking forward to working with the talented in-house team and SMG to take Very Media Group from strength to strength.”