Debenhams appoints chief marketing officer

Debenhams has announced that Abigail Comber has joined the department store group as chief marketing officer.

She has spent the majority of her career at British Airways (BA); her most recent roles being head of customer experience and global head of brands and marketing. In a 24-year career at BA, her portfolio included brand strategy, marketing, customer experience design, partnerships, sponsorship, and community relations. Highlights include leading BA’s sponsorship of the UK teams at the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics.

Since leaving BA in May 2018, Abigail has worked with businesses developing turnaround plans led by her marketing and customer experience.

Debenhams ceo Stefaan Vansteenkiste said: “We are delighted that Abigail is joining Debenhams. Her track record speaks for itself and her experience and understanding of customer engagement and developing digital service initiatives will be particularly important, as we continue to work on transforming Debenhams into a business that can compete effectively in the rapidly-changing retail environment.”

Abigail commented: “With 19 million customers in the UK in stores and online, the opportunity to play an important part in developing Debenhams’ customer proposition for the next decade is really exciting. I’m delighted to be joining Stefaan and the team to help build a successful future for one of the UK’s best-known retail businesses.”