One leader. Three disciplines. One strategy.
Brand Impact is Chay Watkins' fractional marketing leadership company. It brings brand, e-commerce and AI together under one strategy, the Triangle of Truth. Most businesses run those three apart, in different teams with different agendas. Brand Impact runs them as one. Where they overlap is where the growth is.
The promise is simple: marketing that moves the numbers. Not activity, not theatre, commercial growth you can see in the P&L.
Classic brand. Digitally native. Now AI native.
One career, three eras, each building on the last.
Classic brand
Trained in proper brand management, brand managing FRijj at Dairy Crest and shifting it from promotion-led discounting to premium and innovation. Brand as a commercial asset still runs through everything.
Digitally native
Digital was never someone else's job. Built the e-commerce, performance and CRM first-hand, from a DTC launch and 73% online growth at SCI-MX to a £21m e-commerce operation at Cake Box.
AI native
Studied AI properly, how it works under the bonnet as well as how to use it. Machine learning, agents and applied systems, built in as leverage rather than a gimmick.
What ties the three together is a focus on the commercial move, the one that shows up in revenue and margin, not the marketing that just looks busy.
Challenger, scale-up, group and board.
Every scale that matters to a growing business, carrying the number at each one.
SCI-MX
Marketing director and equity partner. Grown to £45m retail sales, number two in UK sports nutrition, then sold to Samworth Brothers.
Cake Box
Brand and digital transformation on the PLC board, past £90m retail sales, with a refresh that added 5pts awareness and 7% like-for-like.
Samworth Brothers
On the brands marketing board of a £1bn-plus group, shaping brand and investment decisions across the portfolio.
Three disciplines, held by commercial judgement.
Brand
Classic brand management, positioning, architecture and innovation, built to command a price.
E-Commerce
Stores, performance and CRM, native to how he works, not outsourced.
AI
Machine learning and agents as well as generative tools, used to make marketing faster, sharper and cheaper to run.
Commercial judgement
Holding all three together, from someone who has owned the number on a board.
What the boards and teams say.
“Chay is an outstanding marketing leader. He has the ability to quickly assess a business, develop a marketing strategy and implement at pace. At Cake Box he had an immediate impact on growth whilst also developing the resource, capability and platform to sustain it.”
“A very broad marketing, e-commerce and brand skill set, deployed expertly in new business environments. An agile self-starter who is happy to get his hands dirty and does not need a sizeable budget to hit the goals set.”
“An exceptional marketing leader and mentor. His strategic vision, work ethic and unwavering support have made a lasting impact on the team and the business. He leads with inspiration.”
“Very clear in what he seeks from agencies, and very commercially focused.”
The grounding.
From challenger scale-up to PLC board. Based in London and Cardiff, available anywhere in between.
- Executive MBA with Artificial Intelligence, Cardiff University (High Distinction)
- First-class degree in Business Management
- Digital Marketing Institute, expert level
- Grocer 35 Under 35
- Guest lecturer in brand management
- 15 years across FMCG, retail, drinks and hospitality
Senior leadership, without the full-time hire.
Get in touch with where the business is now and where it needs to get to.