Coach Class

Interview with Katherine Paterson, Customer Director Hobbycraft

September 13, 2021 Dom Burch Season 1 Episode 26
Coach Class
Interview with Katherine Paterson, Customer Director Hobbycraft
Show Notes

Katherine has been Customer Director at Hobbycraft for eight and a half years and is accountable for marketing and brand, the Hobbycraft Club and its ecommerce business. 

She studied at Glasgow Uni, where she intended to study English, but came out with an economics and management degree - which is a story of her career. 

He first role was at Mars, Pedigree Masterfoods, where she did a rotation of two years in lots of different functions. It was really challenging, but you are assigned a mentor, and given a safety net to try things and understand the benefit of taking risks. 

Katherine joined Hobbycraft from B&Q, where she was Executive Marketing Director for two years, and, prior to that, spent nine years at ASDA in a variety of roles including Marketing Director and Ecommerce Director. 

She loves working for entrepreneurial businesses that have a strong brand and connection with their customers. 

Culture is really important to her. When she joined Mars you felt like you were all colleagues one team. Anyone who joins you can learn from, peer to peer or from your manager or you to them. 

Usually you were doubling something, or halving the cost - which set you up for a growth plan, the culture gave you confidence to try, with a support structure around you.

Katherine has been reflecting recently on the benefits that remote working brought to the workplace, but thinks you can't replace face-to-face coaching, being in the room together, or walking the store together. 

Helping people join the organisation remotely has been a challenge. Sat on Zoom on your own, you may be conscious of constantly asking questions. Whereas in the office or in store you can observe but also have an ongoing chat.

The bit she loves about her job is filling in the insight gaps that you can glean from data with conversations with colleagues and customers in stores. 

I asked what piece of advice she would give her younger self - she says she wouldn't change much. Always be ambitious, ask for help along the way, try to be the best you can be rather than focus on a particular role, always put yourself forward, just go for it. 

She believes you need to set out your point of difference and go for it. 

She picks out people that were a positive influence on her in her career, Rick Bendel, David Cheesewright, Angela Spindler and Rebecca Rees - who treated Katherine and her partner Stephen to go out for dinner on the company when she managed to hit her target - it didn't cost the company much but it left a lasting impact on her, and is something she likes to do now for others.

She also tells the story about Tony Lowe who Katherine was presenting to in a big meeting in her early career, she could tell he was waiting to say something. When she asked what it was, he told her he was waiting for her to get off the fence. From that moment on she never held back from making a decision.

If you enjoy listening to this podcast why not check out some of the others in season 1 & 2. Or perhaps you fancy taking part yourself? If so why not get in touch. You can find me via LinkedIn or Twitter