GfK Hires to Strengthen In-Store Testing Offer

GfK has appointed Thomas Schmidt as SVP on its Sales Effectiveness team in North America, working out of the company's Cincinnati office.

Schmidt brings more than twenty years' experience in shopper research. Most recently, he was EVP, Client Development & Marketing, at in-store custom research provider Integrated Research Associates (IRA), focused on testing brand and category innovation and capturing customer insights through a mix of quant and qual. Earlier, he was Manager of Business Analytics at Bath & Body Works; and before this he spent ten years at Nielsen division Market Decisions, offering custom in-store testing research to major CPG manufacturers.

Neal Heffernan, EVP of Sales Effectiveness at GfK, comments: 'Tom has truly made in-store testing his wheelhouse, developing a degree of expertise that assures clients that they will get the clear answers they need. He has worked across all major CPG categories and has a unique talent for developing and keeping client trust. We are thrilled to add such a smart, deeply experienced researcher to our team'.

Web site: www.gfk.com .