International Marketing Controller

the ideal candidate

• Has 5+ years in FMCG marketing, with strong exposure to European markets and experience across trade/shopper marketing and brand activation
• Demonstrates strong commercial and financial acumen, with proven experience managing budgets, P&Ls, and delivering ROI-driven marketing plans
• Has built and executed multi-market strategies, including market entry and expansion plans
• Is highly analytical and data-driven, with strong Excel skills and experience leveraging consumer, shopper and category data to drive decisions
• Has experience leading through the line marketing and managing agencies doing so.
• Is an ambitious and proactive self-starter with a strong ownership mindset
• Has excellent communication and presentation skills, comfortable influencing senior stakeholders and external partners
• Is highly organised, able to manage complexity across multiple markets and priorities
• Has line management experience
• Is passionate about itsu, our brand, and our ambition to grow internationally

This is a strategic role, responsible for building and executing international marketing strategies across new and existing markets in Europe.

You will lead the development of market entry plans, growth strategies, and activation roadmaps, ensuring best‑in‑class execution across trade marketing, OOH, and consumer channels.

You will manage budgets, lead a growing team, and work closely with commercial teams, distributors, and retailers to accelerate itsu’s international expansion.

• Collaborate closely with the itsu[grocery] Brand, Marketing, and international teams to oversee and/or manage multi‑channel brand strategies and communications calendars across key markets
• Defining brand and product‑level growth strategies
• Allocating investment in line with strategic priorities
• Leveraging data, research, and insights to build robust business cases and secure stakeholder alignment
• Develop tailored market entry and expansion strategies, grounded in local consumer, retailer, and category dynamics
• Oversee commercial sell‑in and strategic discussions with insight‑led, compelling marketing plans
• With your team, monitor, analyse, and report on the performance of brand investments and marketing campaigns
• Lead comprehensive post‑campaign analysis
• Evaluate the effectiveness of marketing spend and refine long‑term brand strategies accordingly
• Conduct quarterly performance reviews with senior stakeholders, providing clear updates and actionable recommendations
• Oversee and maintain strong relationships with key agency partners (media, digital, and creative), ensuring high‑quality delivery, effective performance management, and cost control
• Line‑manage and develop the international marketing team [currently one direct report], fostering capability building, accountability, and high performance

• competitive salary
• competitive bonus scheme
• 25 days holiday + bank holidays (2 bank holidays are interchangeable for other religious holidays)
• health insurance
• company pension scheme
• hybrid working (2 days WFH)
• opportunity to work from home abroad
• 50% employee discount in itsu shops
• free itsu lunch
• discounts at major retailers
• a sizeable training budget to support your ongoing development

itsu [grocery] is committed to building a diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation. We encourage applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply for all of our opportunities.