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.
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.
Ceri Steele
Researcher and Telesales Executive.
Paula Mills
Researcher and Telesales Executive.
Paula drives sales via research and use of the phone and email. Customers can request samples and further information about clients’ products and Paula will open new accounts or arrange appointments fort the National Accounts Team.
