Responsible for formulating the strategy and delivering commercial product development for the Soft drinks & juices category as well as the Eat Now (Food on the Move) category.During this time I launched a range of Functional Super Smoothies, Super waters, new health shots and iced teas.

Responsible for the successful delivery of the Christmas 2018 range of Cakes, puddings and mince pies. I was also working on a Cake Revolution brief to create a step change in our Celebration cakes and exciting new recipes for Christmas 2019.

I spent the longest period of my Product Development career in Groceries and it was during this time that a new role of Senior Product Developer was created. My line manager recommended me for this position due to my skills as a team player, leading influencer on quality, my food expertise and grasp of the food group strategy and core values.In Groceries my responsibilites were predominantly World Foods covering the Italian, Mexican, Indian, Oriental ranges but additionally I covered pasta, rice & noodles, oils & vinegar, dressings, condiments, canned soups and our Cook with M&S range. I was the key developer in Groceries for products which were launched into our successful Cross Group summer ranges such as Spirit of Summer and Taste of the British Isles.As part of this team we won a number of awards - Food Group Team of the year, Q award for our 3 Easy step Keralan curry kit, Grocer award for our 3 Easy step Goan curry kit and a packaging design award for our relaunched salad dressing bottle and our Thai kit packs.

Working across 2 categories in Produce, I was responsible for delivering the Planted ranges for all the key events such as Christmas and Mother's day for both stores, Direct and the cross business Gift Shop. I also developed the prepared fruit and dried fruit & nuts ranges and project managed the Produce re-design.

During this time I worked closely with our Nutritionist and the Rowett Institute of Aberdeen to launch a new health brand called Fuller for Longer (now called Balanced for You) in January 2010 .This was particularly challenging as all products needed to not only taste delicious but meet strict nutritional guidelines with very tight timescales.I was also responsible for development in the Count on Us and Kids ranges. Proud to say that whilst in this category we achieved number 1 and number 2 health brands in the market.

An exciting and diverse role developing products across a range of different industries including drinks, cakes, snack bars, deli snacks, savouries, prepared fruit and desserts. New ranges during this time included cake bars, cereal bars and deli/ dip snack pots.

Responsible for the Hot eating and Patisserie ranges of the catalogue including the launch of Gastropub desserts.

Responsible for the Strategy and development of prepared fruit, dried fruit & nuts and all the packaging development for the category.

Main areas of responsibility were the creation of the new Mediterranean Deli range but additionally I covered Deli fillers, pate, cold pastry products including pork pies and Quiche. This covered core all year round products and seasonal Christmas specialities.

I joined Marks & Spencer as a 'job changer' having previously been a Hotel & Restaurant Inspector for the AA. I started my training in the Pie category during a challenging time in the industry due to the BSE crisis which resulted in lots of alternative meats to beef being used in pies.I also spent time in the American snacking and pizza category and traditional meals.I went on Maternity Leave at the beginning of May 1999 to have my son William and returned in November 1999.

I worked for the AA as a Hotel Inspector for 3 years, inspecting hotels and restaurants in a geographical area of the country, awarding their star classifications and AA rosette ratings. In the last two years I was promoted to a Senior Hotel Inspector. As a Senior Hotel Inspector I managed a group of key accounts, carrying out consultancy projects for them which I presented back to Senior Management. I was also very lucky to be able to tour the country assessing the cuisine of some of the finest chefs in the country and writing reviews of my experience for the AA restaurant guide.