The Pools has appointed growth strategy expert and award-winning marketeer Sharon Wright as its new Marketing Director.
Wright will spearhead a major growth drive for The Pools in 2025, with a new brand campaign at the forefront of a multi-channel, high-profile marketing strategy.
She joins the iconic British betting brand having previously held substantial roles in finance, customer experience, sales, and marketing. This includes significant tenures at Nike, Adidas and Reebok, where her achievements were recognised by winning multiple marketing awards.
Wright joined The Adidas Group in 2009 and became Reebok’s Global Go-to-Market Director in 2013. During her time there, she launched the Reebok-Crossfit partnership into the UK and the Reebok-Les Mills partnership globally, growing the brand on an international scale and strengthening its market presence in the studio category.
In earlier roles at Nike and Adidas, Wright helped to grow both brands’ women’s business to the number one position in the UK and Ireland during her tenure.
In 2017, Wright founded her own consultancy, Sports Business Growth, and for the past few years has been mainly focused on technology in sport, specifically apps and subscription models.
Wright is Chair of Powerplay The Future, a platform that facilitates connections between investors and female founders who are leading startup businesses and seeking investments to accelerate the growth of their sports products.
She also holds an Advisory Board position for Everything in Sport which brings together top executives and decision-makers globally from the sports and business world.
Wright will work closely with The Pools CEO James Arnold and report to COO Steve Talbot.
Sharon Wright, The Pools Marketing Director, said:
I came to The Pools as a consultant and I always knew the value of this iconic brand. The immense amount of potential I could see to help take this back to where it belongs was an opportunity I could not resist. Coupled with the fact I get to work with James and Steve who I greatly admire. They are a dynamic force, proven in the industry and their energy and drive is infectious and something I wanted to be part of.
It’s an exciting moment for us as we relaunch this iconic brand with a campaign that celebrates its timeless appeal while connecting with today’s audience in new and engaging ways. It showcases our investment in our products and customer experience.
James Arnold, The Pools CEO, said:
The Pools is a British institution. We celebrated our 100-year anniversary last year and there just aren’t brands out there in our industry with the same history and heritage.
We’ve been working hard to modernise our technical infrastructure and improve the wider product portfolio, culminating in the move to a new gaming platform and the relaunch of a new website at the end of this year. We have high expectations in 2025 as we rebrand, relaunch, and reintroduce The Pools to a new audience.
We wanted some fresh thinking when it comes to marketing, and with Sharon’s experience at such global sporting brands, combined with her outstanding background in growth strategy, it was clear she was the ideal candidate for this position. We are excited she is joining the team and look forward to her integral role in the future of our successes.
