Name
Cynthia Allaglo
Age
30
Job title
Brand manager
Company and location
Ecotone, UK head offices in Camberley, Surrey
Education
Master Degree in Business Management from Kedge Business School in France.
Favourite food/drink
I especially love South East Asian food from curries to stir-fries, as the options are endless.
What inspired you to enter F&B?
I have always been attracted to food in general, as I’m a real foodie at heart and spend a lot of my free time finding new restaurants to try. I have never found that grocery shopping was a chore, on the contrary, I am always on the hunt of finding new exciting new products to try whether it’s because I like the packaging or because it can be novel.
Tell us about your role
I am the brand manager of Kallø, a purposeful snacking and organic stock brand owned by Ecotone UK. Our portfolio is split between innovative healthy snacking products (led by our viral Veggie Cakes) as well as an organic stock range, which includes our recently launched broths. My job is varied, focussing on the development of exciting new products as well as crafting campaigns that bring more consumers into the Kallø brand.
What does a typical day look like?
The great thing about my role is that there isn’t ever a ‘typical’ day. I would say that the only constant is emails and meetings! The rest of my time is split between:
- Building the Kallø innovation pipeline to increase the penetration of the brand
- Finding a way to connect with consumers through comms
- Reviewing my brand’s performance
- Building action plans to make sure we keep growing
How did you get to where you are today?
I started with internships working on batteries and coffees, where I gained experience across various channels. I then moved to the UK to broaden my horizons abroad. Here, I started in health and beauty before transitioning to food when I joined Ecotone four years ago.
Ecotone has a diverse portfolio of ethically produced brands with a strong focus on sustainability, which really appealed to me. The company is committed to supporting biodiversity, from organic and Fairtrade teas with Clipper, to Kallø’s organic stock cubes and alternative ingredient-rich snacks. It’s a great place to build brands and develop products that are better for people and the planet.
When you’re having a bad day, what cheers you up?
Nothing works better than listening to my favourite Spotify playlist, and eating chocolate!
What’s your favourite part about the food sector?
My favourite part about the food sector is how fast this industry changes. We constantly need to adapt to external factors, trends, and consumer needs which mean that my job will never be the same every day. A key challenge to solve at the moment is how to keep producing while maintaining sustainability and health. I love being part of this journey – and I want to keep helping consumers making better food choices! Through this, I feel that I am making a difference by working at Ecotone.
If you could change one thing about the F&B sector what would it be?
I think there is still a job to make this sector more diverse: having more women leaders and people from various backgrounds. It still feels that being a woman at a high position is an exception – when it really needs to be the norm.
What’s next for you/what’s the dream?
I would love to keep working on building amazing brands with strong sustainability commitments, while developing consumer-led NPDs. Ultimately, my dream is to be a marketing director.
