Was: marketing director for Musgrave Retail Partners GB
Now: marketing director for Tragus Group
Years worked in grocery: 17

Career background: Bird joined Asda as a management graduate trainee in 1994. After Asda, Bird moved on to The Co-operative Group, where she worked for 11 years in roles including director of brand marketing. In 2008, she became marketing director for Musgrave Retail Partners GB, owner of Budgens and Londis, before leaving the sector in February 2010 to become marketing director for Tragus Group, the restaurant operator of Café Rouge, Bella Italia, Strada and Belgo.

Biggest achievements in grocery: Bird was part of the team that developed The Co-op’s ‘Good With Food’ strapline. In November 2009, The Grocer named Bird as one of the 35 most influential women in grocery. She memorably said she had used “the pickaxe in my Prada handbag” to smash through the glass ceiling.

How different is the restaurant industry? “The immediacy is much more full-on - customer feedback happens there and then,” Bird says. “In technical terms, there is not much difference. I am still speaking to customers, understanding likes and dislikes and developing compelling propositions with value for money at the heart.”

Do you miss the grocery sector? “I love grocery - the buzz of the shop, the customer experience and the money ringing in the tills is fantastic. I started as a kid selling sweets in my grandfather’s village shop and retailing is in my blood.”

Will you come back? “Oh, undoubtedly, if they will have me! But I’m loving my time in the restaurant sector - it is great to be part of a invigorated consumer experience.”