General manager of marketing for Schweppes, Troy McKinna, has left the business after four and a half years in the role.
McKinna is departing to take on a director role at Agents of Spring, which is a research and innovation agency that aims to help businesses solve problems, identify growth opportunities and generate new ideas using consumer research, creative problem solving and design thinking.
Prior to his role at Schweppes, McKinna held several roles at Mars, working across multiple portfolios.
During his time at Schweppes, he was responsible for relaunching the Cool Ridge brand, as well as being involved in starting the liquid drop category in Australia with the launch of LQD+ and Cottee’s Squirts.
McKinna told AdNews that over the past few years he's learnt that: “Great marketing needs the combination of pithy insights, solid strategy and cracking ideas.
“I'm keen to leverage my skill set and broaden my horizons,” he added.
He says that he's gained experience in commercialising insights and ideas over the years and now he wants to work with a diverse range of clients, with the aim to transform their businesses.
In June of last year, Schweppes began reviewing its creative agency arrangements, with a view to move to a roster model, in order to have Melbourne's “best minds on its biggest problems”.
McKinna told AdNews that the aim was to build a more “sustainable” way for both its marketing department and agencies to work. The new structure involves both paying agencies a concept fee and making the process as lean as possible by only have a small group working on the brand on the agency side.
While McKinna told AdNews it had narrowed its partner agencies from a dozen interested agencies to seven in November, AdNews understands Schweppes was weeks away from naming its final agency roster, comprised of no more than three agencies. It is not clear what impact this shake-up might have on the process.
In his outgoing comments, McKinna called the development of this new agency model of one his highlights of his role.
“It’s evident that we’ve needed a new way of developing big ideas and that the old retainer model is a thing of the past,” McKinna says.
“It’s been refreshing to work with the more progressive agencies in town that are up for the change. What’s been very clear is that clients and agencies should stop buying and selling head hours and should find a way to collaborate on ideas and IP and value it accordingly.”
Earlier this month BWM Dentsu launched the first campaign under this new creative model with its “brewed to hit the spot” work fro Real Iced Tea.
McKinna joins Evette Cordy at Agents of Spring, who is an entrepreneur and psychologist with extensive international experience in consumer research, creativity and innovation.
It is unclear if Schweppes has a replacement.
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