News

Packaging News has completed its countdown of the 50 most influential people in the UK packaging industry. The full Power 50 is published in the magazine's July issue.

Click here to see numbers 50-41
Click here to see numbers 40-31
Click here to see numbers 30-21
Click here to see numbers 20-11

10 Pascal Giraud (NEW)
Business development director, SAICA
If one company has fascinated the packaging industry in the last year, it is SAICA. The Spanish corrugated group took the UK market by storm last summer, paying £100m for SCA's corrugated business in the UK and revealing plans to build a £250m lightweight recycled paper mill near Manchester.

In his role as SAICA Pack business development director, Pascal Giraud has been handed responsibility for the UK business. It's a big task and, as the recession has taken hold, one which has forced him into some tough decisions, including making redundancies at the company's Hartlepool and Edinburgh box plants. Costs are also under review on the Manchester mill project.

For Giraud, though, much of this will be business as usual - he has more than 20 years' experience in the packaging industry, including running SAICA's business in France and overseeing some major investments. How the company fares in the UK in the years to come remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the eyes of the industry will be on Giraud.

9 Shane Monkman (9)
Buying manager - packaging and environment, Asda
You'd never catch Shane Monkman sitting on a fence. Last year he described the very right-on idea of compostable packaging as being a "really grey area" and more recently criticised Tesco's decision to allow customers to leave packaging at the till with the pithy: "One simple reason: tills take cash and local authorities take packaging."

Yet it's a straightforward approach that has seen the former McCain Foods packaging buyer become a public voice in the debate over packaging's environmental credentials and a key player in the industry's associations.

It may also be why he has taken on increasing responsibility at Asda. In the past year, his remit has grown from packaging on around 11,000 product lines to cover recycling and other environmental areas.

Not only that, but he has pushed through the introduction to the UK of Asda owner Wal-Mart's Packaging Scorecard, seen by many as a global first in the industry.

Perhaps that's why one supplier describes Monkman as a buyer who "sticks to his guns and does exactly what he should be doing, even in hard times".

8 Jane Bickerstaffe (10)
Director, Incpen
Jane Bickerstaffe is an "influential lobbyist and industry champion," according to one observer. She patiently defends the role of packaging every time carrier bags, Easter eggs or other such easy targets hit the national headlines.

When the Local Government Association published its report condemning supermarkets for not tackling ‘excess' packaging, Bickerstaffe was in the front line of defence explaining packaging's role in the supply chain.

Her professionalism and drive combined with her ability to package science into easily understood language makes her a favourite with those outside the industry looking for informed answers.

She has forged links with brands and retailers, and tirelessly promotes a sensible approach to sustainable packaging. She has been at the forefront of the campaign to reduce food waste from the beginning.

Bickerstaffe got her grounding in packaging and the environment at Metal Box, where she got her hands dirty in the pursuit of data. She was involved in the first project in Europe to try to establish the percentage of waste made up by packaging, which meant hand-sorting 22 tonnes of rubbish. 

Bickerstaffe started at Incpen in the 1980s. After a spell out of the industry raising children, she returned to Incpen and has been there ever since.

7 Dick Searle (4)
Chief executive, Packaging Federation
Dick Searle is, without doubt, the voice of the packaging industry. He is described by people in the sector as "a great crusader for our industry" and an "influential champion and consensus builder".

Along with Incpen director Jane Bickerstaffe, Searle has forged a niche as the go-to guy for the mainstream media on packaging issues, including, this year, a tongue-in-cheek interview with Radio 2 DJ Chris Evans which ended with the song Rapper's Delight - presumably a pun on wrapping.

Nevertheless, Searle has a reputation for being a straight talker, but he has also had to use all of his diplomatic skills to forge links with government ministers, retailers and brands, and convince them to listen to both sides of the packaging debate.

As such, his year has been marked by lobbying on part two of the Courtauld Commitment, Defra's packaging strategy that was published this month and producing, with the government's Advisory Committee on Packaging and Incpen, a myth-busting pamphlet titled ‘Packaging in Perspective'.

Searle, whose many hobbies include skiing and flying, honed his negotiating technique early on in his career, wresting control of Metal Box factories from the grips of the Workers' Revolutionary Party. He has worked in virtually every sector in the packaging industry, which he describes as "invaluable" for his current role.

6 Jerry Kerins (NEW)
Chesapeake, Chief executive
Chesapeake's fall into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection over the Christmas holiday sent shockwaves across the industry. But six months later, and with new chairman and chief executive Jerry Kerins at the helm of the paperboard and plastics manufacturer things are looking somewhat brighter.

Kerins took charge in May following the completion of the $485m (£298m) sale of the company's operating businesses to private equity institutions Irving Place Capital Management and Oaktree Capital Management.

As a member of the supervisory board and an investor in German-headquartered flexible packaging and film manufacturer Nordenia, Kerins had exposure to Oaktree Capital Management and later worked with the private equity firm and its partner Irving Place Management to secure the Chesapeake deal.

His experience in the flexibles industry includes 15 years as founder and chief executive of international PET container supplier Continental PET Technologies. He built the company from one factory in 1983 to an international supplier with 26 factories across 10 countries.

All eyes are on Kerins as Chesapeake enters this new stage of its story. Will the American return the company to the 158-year-old Field name? Will he restore the company to the dominant position enjoyed under Keith Gilchrist's reign? The industry waits with bated breath.

5 Liz Goodwin (5)
Chief executive, Waste & Resources Action Programme
In the words of one observer, Liz Goodwin's decisions affect the jobs of everyone in the UK packaging industry. And whether you love or hate the Waste & Resources Action Programme (Wrap), her influence on packaging policy is undeniable. If anything, in the last year that influence has got stronger.

First, Goodwin announced that the initial aim of the Courtauld Commitment, to design out growth in packaging weight, had been achieved. Soon after, the organisation turned its attention to its Love Food, Hate Waste campaign - seen by many in packaging as recognition, at last, that product waste is a far greater problem than packaging waste.

Late last year, Wrap published figures showing that supermarkets had cut their use of single-use carrier bags by 25%. Then, earlier this year, the organisation, which is funded by Defra, was put at the head of a single body to cover resource efficiency across a range of sectors.

Yet it has not been all good news for Goodwin, who was appointed to the top role at Wrap in early 2007. In December, she was personally attacked by the Daily Mail for a £30,000 bonus she received. The paper dubbed the payment a "bin banisher's reward" paid for "abolishing weekly rubbish collections". Wrap retorted that Goodwin and its other directors had met objectives despite a 30% budget cut in the previous year.

Yet Goodwin's many supporters argue that she and Wrap are worth the money. One industry source says that even if it's easy for the press to knock Wrap, the organisation has done more than any other to bring together all the stakeholders in the supply chain, while another praises Goodwin for "keeping a quango focused".

And as the coming year progresses, Goodwin's influence looks unlikely to wane - not least with the planned launch of   the carbon-counting stage two of the Courtauld Commitment and a focus on recycling mixed plastic. Watch this space.

4 Sonia Raja (18)
Head of packaging, Tesco
"Tesco speaks, everyone follows." These were the words of one industry insider when asked why Sonia Raja should be in the Power 50 list this year. And given her position as head of packaging at the UK's biggest retailer, it's hard to argue with Raja's position.

But the former McCormick's packaging buyer's ranking is not based on the size of her employer alone. Now in her second year in a role as, effectively, Tesco's enforcer for the Courtauld Commitment, Raja has made her mark both inside the company and in the wider world.

On Tesco products, the year has been characterised by the completion of 2,000 own-label packaging reduction projects, of the more than 3,000 on the drawing-board.

Many branded products have come under the same scrutiny as part of a massive project led by Raja to collect information on packaging from more than 1,600 suppliers of some 100,000 SKUs. The aim is to chart the progress of different brands in optimising their packaging.

And, perhaps unsurprisingly, Raja has been in demand, with involvement in projects with Wrap, the Packaging Recycling Action Group and recycling organisation Recoup. She has worked on guides to packaging design, mixed plastics recycling, and been co-chair for a project with ECR Europe and Europen on packaging and sustainability, not to mention judging SCA Packaging's Design Challenge awards.

As if that wasn't enough, Raja, who began her packaging career in a plastics packaging firm in her native Kenya, has
been working on a plan to change packaging across the globe. The project, set up by the Global CEO Forum and involving Tesco, Unilever, Europen and others, aims to define common measurements of packaging's environmental impact that can be used by the world's biggest brands. Details were due to be published as this issue of Packaging News went to press. Whatever it says, it's likely to be a case of "Sonia Raja speaks, everyone follows".

3 Leslie Van de Walle (2)
Chief executive, Rexam
It's barely two years since suave Frenchman Van de Walle first got his feet under the chief executive's desk at the world's biggest can-maker. Yet his short time at the company has been marked by major change, both in terms of packaging itself and in running the business.

Of course, he has had to deal with a pummelling of his share price - down from around £5.40 in February 2007 to just over £3.00 now. Yet he has the backing of many City analysts, who believe the stock is undervalued. One observer says: "Van de Walle is managing some challenging times."

The reach of the global business that Van de Walle is managing has also changed considerably. Soon after taking on the job, he led the acquisition of Owens-Illinois' US-based plastics division. And 2009 began with the departure of Bill Barker, who headed up Rexam's beverage can business, leading to Van de Walle taking on direct responsibility for the operation.
But drinks packaging has its fun side, too. Van de Walle, a declared wine lover, has overseen a strategy to sell more cans to UK wine producers and importers. The number of brands launching in this format continues to increase - many examples were on show at the London International Wine Fair in May.

Elsewhere, Rexam's focus on innovation has brought a range of new products to the market. And Van de Walle landed something of a coup when RPC's cosmetic packaging guru Gérald Martines moved to Rexam in April as director of new product development and innovation of make-up.

Observers believe the appointment will reinvigorate Rexam's cosmetics business.

So it looks to be a busy year ahead. Van de Walle will surely be enjoying the odd can of wine. But you might do well to bet against him finding time to improve his golf handicap. Although he probably doesn't need to - it's already just five.

2 Tony Thorne (1)
Chief executive, DS Smith
It can hardly have escaped readers' notice that it's been a tough year for corrugated boxes, especially listed companies in the sector. Tony Thorne's DS Smith hasn't escaped this - his group's position on the stock market was thrown into sharp perspective when its share price hit a 10-year low of 49p in March, around a third of the price of a year earlier.

Yet were it not for the economic storm that has been raging since last summer, and of course the argument that packaging companies are undervalued by investors, you'd be forgiven for thinking that it had been a relatively good year for the publicity-shy Kiwi and the £2bn group he has run since 2001.

For one thing, a number of major investments have come on stream, most notably the £104m conversion of the former M-real mill in Kemsley, Kent. In opening the mill in January, DS Smith became the first major producer of lightweight corrugated case material in the UK, with capacity of 260,000 tonnes every year.

DS Smith's Packaging division has also opened its Impact and Innovation Centre at Ely, a kind of replica supermarket in which customers can test ideas for retail-ready packaging. Early reports suggest it is a fantastic addition to DS Smith's overall offering.

Thorne joined DS Smith in early 2001 after a spell running SCA's corrugated business. Like Rexam chief executive Leslie van de Walle, he is also a graduate of the oil giant Shell, where he held a number of senior management positions before moving into packaging.

But looking to the future, while his company's operations look strong, Thorne will have his work cut out to convince investors it is worth the money. As one observer puts it: "He needs to show clear and strong leadership as the FTSE is watching."

1 Ron Marsh (2008 position: 3)
Chief executive, RPC Group
It probably won't come as much of a surprise to the packaging industry to see Ron Marsh regain the number one spot in the Power 50, which he conceded last year. There can be few players in the sector who are so widely admired and respected.

It's a respect "Mr Rigid Plastics Packaging EU", as one colleague calls him, was earning well before he led an MBO of RPC Group in 1991. And never more deservedly than in the 12 months when he has steered the firm through one of the most challenging years it, and the industry as a whole, has ever faced.

In response to a depressed share price, Marsh did not shy away from difficult choices. In June last year, he announced a strategic review of the business and developed a restructuring programme, RPC 2010. As a result, five sites across Europe have been closed, or are in the process of closing, and the Beauté division has been rolled into the Bramlage-Wiko operation.

Marsh's "farsighted, dynamic leadership", determination and faith in his business ensured the company's share price has bounced back from 97p in December to around £1.60.

While the Raunds facility has been closed as part of the restructuring, business has been shifted to other sites and Marsh has been praised for "sticking to building a UK-based business" at a time it might have been easier to relocate overseas.

As the restructuring goes on, RPC has not forgotten its customers and continues to roll out new packaging products such as the Jugit reusable milk jug for Dairy Crest. Sales have continued to rise, although profit has been hit by restructuring costs and high raw material costs that the firm has sought to offset by increasing its prices.

A colleague says much of the reason for RPC being able to maintain a robust business model in difficult times is Marsh's hands-on leadership style. Indeed, he can be a very difficult person to get hold of as he is often visiting plants across the UK, Europe and in the US. "He's a very nice person who has achieved wonders. He's the best man for the job."