Influencer marketing company, Influencer has announced the appointment of Jodie Collins as Commercial Director, reinforcing their plans for aggressive worldwide expansion through a strong female leadership team. The announcement closely follows Influencer’s £3 million Series A injection by Puma Private Equity. This crucial hire will help to propel the business into a further stage of growth, following on from their previous growth of 420% year-on-year.
Collins will work closely alongside digital media veteran Jane Loring, previously of Mode Media and Microsoft, whose appointment as Influencer’s first COO was announced in October. Collins will oversee Influencer’s commercial team as the company continues to work towards sustaining a consistent trajectory of growth. Collins will also be working closely with Influencer’s CEO Ben Jeffries, and CVO, and world-renowned YouTuber and creator, Caspar Lee.
Collins brings a wealth of experience to the role, having previously taken on client director roles at companies such as UniLad and TripAdvisor, working within the travel vertical. Whilst with the UniLad Group, Collins took on the role of Travel Director and oversaw the UniLad Adventure travel strand. During this time, she worked with some of the world’s largest travel brands, at a variety of levels, to consult on their digital activity. Prior to this, Jodie spent time as a Client Manager at TripAdvisor, creating beneficial partnerships and growing profitable relationships.
Collins’s appointment follows the £3 million (± $3.6million) Series A funding that Influencer received in September from Puma Private Equity. The organization announced it will utilize the funding to drive new innovations to its technology platform, build out its team of industry-leading experts and double its headcount by the end of the year. The company will also open its first US office in New York, led by CEO Ben Jeffries, with expansion planned to the West Coast over the next year.
In a joint statement CEO Ben Jeffries and CVO Caspar Lee stated, “over the past 12 months, Influencer has won some incredible new clients and taken on some of the industry’s best talent. Jodie’s vast experience in the industry and in similar roles, coupled with her amazing network, is sure to propel Influencer forward as we embark on the next stage of our journey.”
Jodie Collins said “I am delighted to join Influencer as Commercial Director. The Influencer Marketing sector is one in which is having incredible traction, and rightly so, with brands understanding how to utilize the platform amongst their traditional advertising media plans. Having just won the ‘Influencer Marketing Agency of the Year’, I’m excited to continue working on the success of which our Sales Team has already showcased, whilst developing Influencer further!”