In recent years, brands have spent billions on influencer marketing, and the returns on their investment are splashed all over our social media feeds: the tiny microphones, the tippety-tap of manicured nails on packaging, and the ubiquitous “hey guys…” that kickstarts almost every post. For Marks & Spencer, though, it turned out that their greatest marketing weapon was already on the payroll – and had been for decades.
Kathryn Turner – if you somehow don’t already know – is M&S Food’s director of product development, having worked her way up through the ranks since she started at the retailer in the 1990s. Not only is she brilliant at her day job (the introduction of the M&S Bakery Milk Chocolate Cookies alone surely warrants a hefty pay rise), she’s also become a social media star, with 3.3m TikTok likes, as well as a 230k-strong Instagram following that includes Nigella Lawson and Stormzy.
If there were ever a moment to pause and feel pride in being British, it’s surely when you’re immersed in your fifteenth consecutive Kathyrn Turner reel, being introduced to “Owen from dips” as he talks us through the newest additions to the deli aisle inside the nation’s temple of picky bits. Or transported to an M&S boardroom to witness a dog named Ralph trying out the new Paws&Pals pet food collection. A platinum-blonde Gen Xer with a great line in officewear, a microphone that’s sensibly pinned to her clothing rather than clasped between gel-manicured fingers, and a perennially perky demeanour, Turner posts not to the main @marksandspencer social channel, but via her own account. Think behind-the-scenes insights, favourite products and ingredients intel, all presented in a way that feels informative, authentic and as addictive as a bag of Pickled Jalapeño Pretzels. Recently, past midnight, I caught myself watching a party food preview in which she described the brand’s Cinnamon Churros Twists as “swavoury” (“both sweet and savoury”, before I finally called it a night.
What makes Turner so watchable – and her content so effective – is that she actually understands what she’s talking about. With 31 years at Marks & Sparks under her belt, she knows both the brand and the product range inside out, and her enthusiasm for the Tiramisu Iced Cream Cake makes it clear she’s actually eaten one. After all, who better to sing the praises of the brand’s new lobster flavoured crisps than the person who presumably signed them off? Despite her easy, down-to-earth sunniness, there’s also an authority, a canniness and a laser eye for trends that belies a fantastic business brain. And since Gen X is the generation that consistently spends the most on groceries, showing them someone that they can relate to is much smarter than employing another 20-something to bang on about pistachio butter (although granted, Marks’s Pistachio Crème is also *chef’s kiss*).
Influencers’ general reliance on hyperbolic language tends to devalue their praise when they actually mean it – the capitalist equivalent of the boy who cried wolf. But Turner knows exactly when to deploy a “you need to know about this”, so that you actually pay attention. Never before have I been quite so familiar with the inventory of a supermarket, nor bought so many things I’d previously have walked straight past. The retailer’s reputation is built around trust, reliability, and no-nonsense familiarity, and Turner exudes all of those things: ultimately, she’s the sort of woman you’d trust to keep an eye on your handbag in a cafe whilst you nip to the loos.
Turner has actually earned her right to tell us what to do and what to buy: she has painstakingly developed it – or at least overseen development of it – rather than being parachuted in at the last minute to promote it. With studies consistently showing that large percentages of schoolchildren aspire to be influencers when they grow up, isn’t it encouraging to see someone gaining a massive following for their actual, hard-earned know-how? M&S has now begun showcasing employees from other areas of the brand too, like Lisa Illis from womenswear, whilst Iceland has notably introduced content from its “Frozen Director”, Lauren Metcalfe. But if this signals a new era in which true insiders get to share their genuine expertise with a larger audience, then bring it on. And save me a bag of Pigs in Blankets Flavour Combo Mix to watch it all with.