Louise Fowler

Louise Fowler is one of the UK’s most successful business  leaders. She launched the British Airways Executive Club, and then the first beds on a plane, which revolutionized business travel and propelled BA to the top of the travel service industry. Previously Marketing Director of Britannia Building Society, she’s currently Marketing and Consumer Specialist at Davenport Strategy.

Louise’s strategic outlook and polished stage presence, coupled with her use of valuable examples of borrowing ideas successfully from other businesses, and practical approach to leadership, make her keynote speeches accessible and always impressive.

With 25 years’ experience at senior levels in travel and financial services, Louise’s career began at British Airways.  As an integral part of the team that launched The Executive Club, Louise went on to lead the airlines’ redefinition of business travel in the1990s with the launch of the world’s first flat beds on a plane. As a result, BA became the world’s top airline for service.

Running BA’s business and operations in 11 countries across Africa, and as Managing Director of Brymon Airways, a £200m UK-based subsidiary, Louise was at the helm of the merger that resulted in British Airways Citiexpress.

Returning to her marketing roots, Louise was then tasked with leading BA’s global marketing where she devised the celebrations to mark the retirement of Concorde in 2003.

Louise’s next move was to retail financial services, where she oversaw the launch of a new Small Business proposition for Barclay’s and the re-launch of Premier banking before moving to the mutual sector.  She repositioned Britannia Building Society as the nation’s challenger and she oversaw the successful merger with Bristol and West.

Louise led the launch of the UK’s first “black box” (telematics) driving insurance product for the Co-operative Insurance under its “young drivers” programme and introduced a customer relationship strategy across the financial services group of 5 businesses and brands including Smile, the internet bank.  In 2010 she was named Financial Services Forum “Marketer of the year”.

Louise most recently concluded a 20 month assignment as Chief Marketing and Digital Officer at the Post Office, leading a major program to integrate marketing and digital, create new innovations, improve the customer journey and deliver sizeable efficiencies in support of a return to profitability. (It’s quite a story!)

Louise now runs Davenport Strategy, a consultancy specialising in helping regulated service businesses define and deliver breakthrough customer strategies.

A regular keynote speaker, facilitator and event chair, Louise helps audiences define and deliver breakthrough customer strategies by stressing the centricity of customers and how to connect with them in the digital age.