The fat controller

The WeightWatchers UK boss wants to tackle obesity - with the help of the supermarkets. Alex Beckett reports


A Lego reconstruction of Mads Ryder's head - sitting proudly on the former 'King of Legoland's' own desk - suggests a man with a rather vain streak. But nothing could be further from the truth.

The round-faced plastic bust serves as a reminder of the days when the WeightWatchers UK senior vice president was four stone heavier - before he started working on the front line against obesity.

These days, the trim 45-year-old could be no better advertisement for the brand, having shed the weight on the very programme he now endorses. But though he's a convert to the cause, Ryder is no ranting preacher-type, repelled by fast food and three-figure calorie counts.

The former Danish army officer understands that overweight people are often too self-conscious to attend a regular WeightWatchers group, which is why he's set out his stall to do something that could change the way we think about dieting in this country and, more importantly as far as Ryder is concerned, revolutionise the way the WeightWatchers brand is perceived.

The brand is already a significant presence in the retail environment, of course. And since Ryder took over as head of the UK business a year ago, supermarket sales of the branded range have leapt 11.5% to £293m [TNS], with Warburtons bread, Heinz ready meals and Yoplait smoothies now among a 26-strong list of licensees. This year, Ryder reveals, a whopping £27m is being invested in marketing the brand - WeightWatchers' biggest-ever spend for the UK market. This will support its meetings operation as well as promoting the food range.

But that isn't what's really exciting the former Lego boss. "I want to use this interview to invite British retailers to work with WeightWatchers on a new and exciting idea," he says. "Last year, we launched a shop-in-shop concept in Australia, just like the pharmacies and opticians you see in UK supermarkets. It's a place where you can buy the products you could normally only buy at WeightWatchers meetings.

"It also offers one-on-one advice and weigh-ins, and is generally a new and more convenient face of WeightWatchers. We've just launched the concept in the US too, in Wal-Mart stores."

Ryder is confident that either the pharmacy format adopted by Australia, which allows shoppers to have a consultation in a private booth, or the American format - a kind of sales kiosk within the supermarket - could also work in the UK.

"People would receive a customised personal meeting in the middle of a weekly shop - not just WeightWatchers members, but anyone who was curious," he says enthusiastically. "It's a strategy for communicating with consumers in a more convenient way and targeting new customers who may be put off meetings because of time constraints or shyness."

These in-store WeightWatchers centres would allow retailers to offer something different, adds Ryder. "Of course, retailers will receive a commission - that's only fair. But they will also be giving consumers another reason to stay loyal, as well as taking visible action against the obesity crisis," he says.

Given the continued focus in the national media on the obesity crisis, there's no time like the present, he says. "We are eager to test it out - the sooner the better. We will start approaching retailers, but if they come to us first it's more of a case of how fast can they act."

Ryder continuously refers to 'we' rather than 'I' - typifying the importance he places on his troops. There are times, he admits, when his language skills desert him, triggering giggles from his noticeably svelte staff (there's no burger van in this car park), but he is clearly well-liked.

The wedge under his open office door is gathering dust, epitomising his Scandinavian management approach. "In the army, when you are out on manoeuvre with your men, you can tap your stars and shout that you are their officer but it doesn't help," he says. "When the mountains are freezing cold, it's dark and you haven't had a shower for two weeks, you need to be constantly co-operating and talking to your people - and not afraid to ask for their advice. Yes, I have the ultimate decision - but I get their input before I make it. There's very little front-line responsibility in many businesses. We must empower UK employees more."

His staff are clearly on side, but will recession-hit consumers be so keen? Ryder believes they will. "Very often, the food industry underestimates the consumer," he says. "If anything, consumers will be fussier about quality and will place health above food spend. Over the past 15 years, they have learned a lot about food quality and nutritional value, and the recession will not reverse that."

Ryder is not worried people will trade down from healthy to cheap foods because, he says, WeightWatchers is already value for money. Plus, the company is working ever harder with its licensed partners to ensure the brand remains ahead of the curve. "We constantly innovate and update, benchmarking our products against competitors, including full-fat," he says. "Our licensees work closely with our head office, in line with our NPD strategy, but we can make more of these relationships."

He cites Greencore, which has enlisted a Michelin-trained chef to develop recipes for its Weight Watchers chilled ready meals range, as an example of where more is being done.

Ryder has settled into his thinner body and heavier responsibilities with ease. There's only one area in which his new job doesn't match up to his old. "I used get a high when people told me how our Lego had magically improved their lives," he says. "If I could listen to more reactions like that - that would make me a king again."

King of WeightWatchers? Now that's a title to aspire to.