The Team

Andrew Coulson

Director and co-founder in 2005. National Account Manager. Consultant.

Andy has over 25 years experience helping FMCG businesses from P&G to Glebe Farm Foods grow and realise their ambitions. Backed by consultancy experience and a career in sales and marketing, Andy has worked with many different food and drink businesses and has a natural tendency to think laterally as well as give a wide choice of options.

For example in 2005, gluten free cakes were only in the health food trade and he posed the question to retailers and foodservice distributors “Why not create a free from category?”

Andy divides his time between new client recruitment, client consultancy and delivering high level foodservice and retail sales.

Daniel Shaw

Director and co-founder in 2005. National Account Manager. Consultant.

Dan complements Andy’s lateral thinking with the capacity to work the detail and enable client objectives to be met. With a sales and trade marketing career including KP and McVitie’s and the William Reed Group prior to forming Cognosco, Dan is also responsible for compiling the sum of Cognosco activity and contacts into the valuable database.

Dan divides his time between client consultancy, working as a National Account Manager for clients with the likes of Brakes, Sainsbury and Waitrose and the day to day management of Cognosco.

Steve Dixon

Director of Wholesale.

After a lifelong career in the food industry in a variety roles and businesses, Steve has accomplished results in a broad range of roles ranging from supermarket management, buying and sales management and coaching, mentoring, training and development roles.

His skills include selling and buying at a senior level and as a blue chip-trained salesman, he has great category management and trade marketing expertise.

He is unstoppably curious and has a huge passion for sales and mentoring.

Marcel James

National Account Manager.

A career with the likes of Sidoli, Ministry of Cake and Handmade Cakes means that Marcel has an intimate understanding of operations and of how to develop sales working alongside wholesalers and as a major account manager.

Working from his base in Taunton, Marcel looks after sales via Bidfood and a number of other key wholesalers as well as end user restaurant groups like Loungers and contract caterers like Baxter Storey with head offices based south and west of Birmingham.

Janet Peters

National Account Manager.

Janet has an extensive sales career with the likes of Coca Cola and Kerry Foodservice, Plus Foods and other major manufacturers.

Travelling in Europe and around the world as well as in the UK, Janet has a wealth of product development experience alongside senior Executive Chefs and senior customer managers.

She brings warmth to relationships with major UK pub groups and foodservice end users from Mitchells & Butlers, Stonegate and Compass to Bourne Leisure and many large universities.

Ashley Cairns

Consultant Brain

Ashley draws upon his very considerable knowledge of working data to deliver new business opportunities in category development initiatives to both the licenced trade and multiple grocers.

Strategically he has assisted leading brands such as Walkers Crisps, Diageo and others with detailed research papers to plc boards as well as actionable targeting detail.

Ashley has worked for leading data consultancies and also blue chip brand owners such as Bass (now Coors), Mitchells and Butlers and AB-In Bev (Stella Artois).

Luan Keen

Researcher and Office Manager.

Luan divides her time between supporting the sales team arranging samples and equipment, running detailed reports for clients and carrying out research activity. The research typically looks at categories stocked, pricing and ranges. Combined with the National Accounts Team experience, this gives valuable insight into the markets that Cognosco approaches on behalf of clients.

Ceri Steele

Researcher and Telesales Executive.

With an extensive background in sales and customer service, Ceri systematically approaches selected businesses to help find more out about their needs or to draw stock through wholesalers. These might be Vending companies or Leisure sites or from a range of different mostly foodservice channels.

Paula Mills