BrainJuicer Hire Fuels Big Ambitions

Fast growing UK-based online agency BrainJuicer has hired Alex Batchelor as Chief Operating Officer. Batchelor held brand and marketing leadership roles at Interbrand, Orange and Royal Mail and is the current Chairman of the Marketing Society.

He began his career at Unilever, working in the UK and Austria, before joining Saatchi & Saatchi as a Planning Director. He ran Interbrand's Brand Valuation team and then became its MD, presiding over rapid expansion. He was Vice President Global Brand at Orange as it became part of France Telecom and launched the brand in 10 countries, before becoming Marketing Director of the Royal Mail and most recently CMO at TomTom.

Based in London, Batchelor will run the firm's offices in Europe and America in addition to its operations side, while CEO John Kearon expands its geographic network, works with global clients and builds the 'Juicy' product range, a key driver of the company's anticipated 26% growth in revenues.

Batchelor has been an investor in BrainJuicer since it floated in 2006 and says he is looking forward to 'developing the company into a genuine competitor to large, more traditional research firms like Millward Brown and TNS.'

'Chief Juicer' Kearon comments: 'Alex is a hugely talented senior executive whose experience with large clients and fast growing agencies will make an enormous contribution to BrainJuicer's ambition of becoming a top 10 global agency.'

Web site: www.brainjuicer.com .