Growing up in Sarnia, Ont., Laura Gray never imagined she’d work on world-class brands such as Pepsi, Max Factor and CoverGirl. But with a true passion for marketing, she can’t imagine doing anything else. “I truly love what I do,” says Gray, senior marketing manager at PepsiCo Beverages Canada. “And I feel very honoured that I get to do it and work on such iconic brands.”
Gray discovered her passion for marketing during her time at Wilfrid Laurier University. She was hired as an intern on the CoverGirl brand at Procter & Gamble and was later brought on full time. She spent the next six years at P&G—three in Toronto and three in Baltimore, Maryland. In her role as global cosmetics brand manager, Gray delivered annual incremental growth of $100 million for CoverGirl and Max Factor globally, and was awarded P&G recognition shares for outstanding leadership and results—the highest recognition at the company.
In July 2013, Gray joined PepsiCo as marketing manager. Six months later, she was promoted to senior marketing manager. Gray now heads the total Pepsi portfolio and oversees a team of 15 agency partners. “My job is to set the marketing strategy and lead the team to deliver breakthrough communications across [all channels],” she says.
Her biggest accomplishment at Pepsi so far is the launch of Pepsi Next, a naturally sweetened, reduced-calorie cola. The brand debuted in Canada in March 2014 with tens of thousands of samples handed out at the Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic in Vancouver. Gray says the brand “is over-delivering all internal and external expectations.”
Gray’s international experience has greatly benefited her, says Maureen Juniper, co-founder and partner at Praxis, PepsiCo’s longtime PR agency. “Laura builds strong relationships with her counterparts on the U.S. and global teams, and these relationships help to build stronger, smarter campaigns.”
Meet the rest of the 30 Under 30 for 2014
