Mars Petcare appoints first chief brand and experience officer

Mars Inc. announced that Najoh Tita-Reid on Nov. 20 will join the company as chief brand & experience officer (CBExO) — a newly created role — for its petcare segment, per information shared with Marketing Dive. She will report to Leonid Sudakov, Mars' president of growth, digital and platforms, who noted Tita-Reid’s record of creating "strong, diverse and inclusive teams."

"[Tita-Reid] will bring her broad and impressive experience across tech, health care and consumer goods to help us scale our impact and accelerate our digital transformation, allowing us to better meet the needs of pet owners and transform the experience of pet ownership," Sudakov said in a statement.

Mars Petcare executive Najoh Tita-Reid — Najoh Tita-Reid on Nov. 20 will join Mars Petcare as chief brand & experience officer.

Courtesy of Mars Petcare

The newly appointed executive is tasked with driving growth across a portfolio of brands and services that includes Pedigree and Whiskas and helping to create a seamless brand and consumer experience. Most recently, she was global CMO at Logitech, where she was responsible for marketing, brand equity, creative, e-commerce and marketing transformation. Previously, the award-winning marketer worked for Bayer, Merck, GlobalHue and P&G.

"I am thrilled to join Mars Petcare at such a pivotal moment, to help lead the next phase of growth. It is a business I have long admired for its inspiring Purpose, great people and amazing brands - and it has already proven that incumbents can innovate, transform, and grow," Tita-Reid said in a statement.

With the move, Mars Petcare continues to focus on digitalization and tech to accelerate business transformation and drive growth. The petcare segment at Mars has more than doubled in the last decade, with a reported $19 billion in global revenue in 2022. Mars is one of the largest privately owned companies in the U.S.

The appointment of a chief brand and experience officer comes as the marketer role in the C-suite continues to evolve. The average tenure of Fortune 500 CMOs was 4.2 years in 2022, down from the 4.5 year average seen the year prior, per a Spencer Stuart report. Several companies have embraced the chief brand officer role, with Disney in April appointing its first CBO and Focus Brands appointing one for Jamba. Meanwhile, Taco Bell's Global Chief Brand and Strategy Officer Sean Tresvant will be elevated to CEO on Jan. 1, 2024.