The Moodie Davitt Report brings you the latest instalment in our popular new series Ten Easy Pieces*, in which we get up close and personal with leading travel retail personalities via ten snapshot questions.
This time we meet veteran drinks industry and travel retail executive Kevin Baker, Global Travel Retail Director at Marie Brizard Wine & Spirits.
1. Let’s start at the very beginning. You were born and raised where?
I was born in Woolwich, London, where my first five years were spent living in a flat with my parents. My middle brother arrived two years after me and I have early memories of us visiting my grandparents in Charlton. We moved to Gravesend, Kent in the early ’60s when my Dad and his brother bought their own butchers’ shop. I then became the oldest of three boys and soon assumed the role of policeman for the other two!
It was a happy and easygoing childhood with lots of friends and games in the fields or woods near our home. I remember music was always being played; this was the era of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis, Tom Jones, Motown and much more. I vaguely remember England winning the World Cup against Germany; then it was the 1968 Mexico Olympics which we watched on our new colour TV. And then in the early 70s, Arsenal won the double [Ed: League and FA Cup] and thus my passion for football in particular, and sport in general, was born.
2. In your teens you attended Springhead Technical and represented the school in a wide range of sports. Did you ever consider pursuing a career in sports?
My teens were a mixture of football, working in Dad’s shop, school work, hockey, scouting, swimming and, when I got bigger, rugby, basketball and volleyball. Like so many things in my life, I had more enthusiasm than ability so a sporting career was never an option! I still like to watch but seldom participate beyond swimming a little.
3. Tell us about your early career and your first move into travel retail. When did your interest in the drinks business develop?
I sold many different categories – confectionery, frozen foods, toiletries, cosmetics & fragrance, soft drinks – before discovering how enjoyable it is to sell drinks. I also worked at Scottish & Newcastle Breweries before joining International Distillers and Vintners in 1990 (which merged with United Distillers to form United Distillers & Vintners and then Diageo). Alcohol sales have been part of my life for over 30 years.
I moved into duty free in 1993 and enjoyed six years of buoyant growth before the abolition of intra-EU duty free sales changed the entire travel retail landscape.
4. You’ve worked for some big names in the travel retail industry: the Nuance Group, Brown-Forman, Diageo, World of Patria International and now Marie Brizard. Let’s consider the changes in the travel retail industry over those years.
Intra-EU abolition proved to be a very difficult challenge and a tough transition towards what we see today. Since then, consolidation and the increasing globalisation of the key accounts have, I believe, also led to a narrowing of the retailers’ attention on to the biggest suppliers. Their joint aversion to risk limits their willingness to capitalise on the remarkable innovations created by smaller suppliers.
We have faced many geo-political, health and economic crises during the past 23 years and this channel’s sheer resilience and ability to respond to adversity has been a regular source of highs and lows.
One constant that seems to have endured is the sociable nature that exists among those that work in travel retail, whether competitors, collaborators or opponents across the negotiating table. Events like Orlando, Cannes and Singapore certainly fuel that sense of collective purpose and direction.
5. Can you recall one stand-out high in your career?
Being a part of Jack Daniel’s rise from almost nothing in travel retail to the world-beating brand it has become is a particular source of pride.
6. How important is personality in the travel retail industry?
Very, but perhaps for different reasons than just being a recognisable character. To me, personality is demonstrated through honesty, integrity, credibility, open-mindedness, persistence and tenacity. One’s ability to stay true to our values and respect others is more important than the ability to make money. Couple this with a cooperative and collaborative attitude and you should be able to get people to notice you.
7. And how significant are the emerging markets and/or the emerging consumers, such as Millennials, to business today?
This is an interesting question for someone as experienced as me (rather than ‘old’ of course!).
Both are a source of extraordinary opportunity. It brings a new set of challenges which our marketing teams must adapt to, and for which our commercial teams must adjust their horizons, planning for different types of investment rather than the traditional lightbox etc. There is an immediate information source that forces us to think in new ways whilst, at the same time, being savvy to the host of misinformation that exists around product prices and availability from those purporting to be online retailers.
8. It’s a year now since you were appointed Marie Brizard Global Travel Retail Director. How are you faring?
This is one of the most exciting periods of my career. MBWS is extremely ambitious and its Back in the Game (BiG) strategy has rapidly transformed it into a growing, forward looking and expectant company. The willingness to invest and engage customers and consumers with exciting activations is very positive and we are carrying that message to all who will listen and would like to work with us.
Our key pillar brands – particularly Marie Brizard, Gautier Cognac and Sobieski Vodka – have undergone strategic reviews of their global positioning and each will benefit from exciting relaunch plans during the second half of 2016 and early 2017.
Whilst it is not easy for smaller suppliers to break into the major retailers’ businesses, I am confident that these plans provide the platform for MBWS to do so.
9. Now, to Shotka vodka. Did you ever imagine yourself promoting a cannabis-flavoured vodka?
Er, no! When first presented with the prospect of selling Shotka I was torn between my natural caution and the desire to help break new ground. We walk a fine line to ensure that we respond to today’s consumer needs and ensuring we are responsible suppliers. And what a brand to do it with.
10. Let’s finish with the ‘other’ side of Kevin Baker. Tell us about your family, your love of children and passion for human rights.
You know, it’s funny, because as I’ve become older it is only my body that reminds me of that, while my mind still thinks it can do whatever I like. That is reflected in my family life, too.
I have a wonderful wife, Tina, who is half English but 95% Greek, and together we have two grown-up, married children and two beautiful grandchildren. Kids are a source of joy to me and seeing them discover and learn and imagine and laugh is amazing. I would like all children to have those opportunities.
I think I would describe it as a strong sense of justice rather than a passion for human rights. For example, I am an immigrant in a country that has welcomed me; I work hard and contribute to my adopted home and believe that everyone should have that same right. That so many of my countrymen don’t share that view and voted to leave the EU is a huge disappointment to me.
Thank you for giving me a chance to reminisce and reflect; I’ve enjoyed thinking answering your questions.
*PREVIOUSLY FEATURED IN TEN EASY PIECES
Meet Moroccanoil VP Sales John Gates
Meet Furla Global Travel Retail Director Gerry Munday
Meet Genie-S Vice President Ralph Bou Nader
Meet Daniel Wellington Founder Filip Tysander
Meet Tumi’s Fernando Ciccarelli
