Do I need to put share data on my Brand Manager CV?

Yes if you're applying to FMCG or large branded businesses, and ideally yes for premium DTC. UK brand-manager hiring managers in 2026 want to see Kantar or Nielsen share-point movement on the brands you owned, because it's the cleanest measure of brand-led commercial impact. If you don't have access to formal share data (smaller brand or category), use proxy metrics: distribution gains in named retailers, ranked sales position, or brand-tracker score shifts. The mistake is omitting all market-context data — without it, your bullets read like media-plan execution rather than brand stewardship.

How do I show creative judgement on a Brand Manager CV?

Through the briefs you wrote and the outcomes the work delivered, not by adjectives. UK hiring managers in 2026 don't want to read 'creative thinker' — they want 'briefed lead agency on brand-platform work delivering 13-point lift in distinctive brand asset recognition'. If you've worked on award-winning campaigns, name the awards (Cannes, Effie, IPA) and your role. If your work hasn't won awards, lean on commercial proof — 3.2x ROI, +1.4 share points, +13% prompted awareness. Creative judgement on a CV is always shown via outcomes, never via self-description.

Should I separate ATL and BTL work on my Brand Manager CV?

Only if you've done meaningful budget ownership in both. UK brand managers in 2026 are expected to be channel-agnostic — the modern brand role spans TV, digital, retail media, shopper, sponsorship and DTC. If your CV silos work into 'ATL achievements' and 'BTL achievements', it dates you. The better structure is by brand-management activity (e.g. 'Brand relaunch', 'NPD launch', 'JBP support'), with channel mix and spend named within each section. That shows hiring managers you think in commercial outcomes, not media-budget categories.

CV Example · Marketing & Sales · UK 2026

Brand Manager CV Example UK

Brand manager CVs are some of the toughest to write because the role straddles commercial, creative and operational. After 12 years placing brand managers in UK FMCG, retail, beauty and DTC, I can tell you the CVs that work in 2026 are the ones that quantify brand health alongside commercial outcomes. Hiring managers want share-point movement, distribution gains, NPD launch results and ATL/BTL ROI — not just 'led brand campaigns'. The other thing CVs get wrong is the agency-management piece: brand managers spend 40% of their time briefing and managing agencies, and most CVs ignore it. Show me the budget, the brand-equity shift and the launch outcomes, and you're shortlisted.

By Alex · 12-year UK recruiter · Updated April 2026

Example header

Hannah Whitfield · Senior Brand Manager · 7 years FMCG · London

Personal statement / Professional summary

Brand manager with 7 years across UK FMCG (food, beverage and household care), currently leading a £42m turnover brand at a top-5 FMCG. Drove +1.4 share points in category over 18 months through a relaunch combining ATL creative refresh, packaging redesign and distribution expansion into 3 major grocers. Manage £6.8m annual marketing budget across TV, digital, retail media and shopper. Comfortable owning P&L, briefing agencies, and partnering with category and supply on commercial planning. Looking for a Senior Brand Manager or Brand Lead role on a £50m+ household-name UK brand.

Bullet point examples

Strong bullets follow the same shape: action verb, specific scope, quantified outcome. Use these as patterns, not as copy-paste templates — the numbers must be your own.

Brand share and commercial performance

Drove +1.4 share points in category (Kantar, 52w/e Dec 24) on £42m turnover brand, contributing £7.2m incremental net revenue.
Led brand from #4 to #2 ranked in category over 18 months through combined relaunch and distribution expansion.
Maintained 28% brand-margin contribution against P&L target of 26%, despite 11% input-cost inflation.

NPD launch and innovation

Launched plant-based line extension (3 SKUs) achieving £4.6m year-one retail sales versus £3m forecast.
Led concept-to-shelf NPD process across consumer research, packaging, formulation and trade sell-in within 11 months.
Secured listings in 4 of top-5 grocers including Tesco premium tier within first 6 months of launch.

Campaign and creative leadership

Led £3.2m ATL campaign (TV + VOD + OOH) delivering 64% prompted brand awareness (versus 51% baseline) per IPSOS post-campaign tracking.
Briefed and managed lead creative agency (£1.4m fees) on brand repositioning; new platform now in year 2 of deployment.
Drove campaign ROI of 3.2x measured by Nielsen MMM versus category benchmark of 1.9x.

Shopper, retail media and trade

Built shopper marketing programme across Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda lifting in-store activation reach by 38% YoY.
Negotiated retail-media partnerships across 3 grocers within £900k budget delivering 4.6x ROAS on tracked SKUs.
Supported sales team on annual JBP (joint business plan) negotiations contributing £2.1m of agreed listings growth.

Brand equity and consumer insight

Commissioned and synthesised £180k consumer insight programme (qual + quant + ethnography) underpinning brand repositioning.
Built quarterly brand-tracker review with leadership; equity scores up 11 points (consideration) and 8 points (relevance) over 18 months.
Trained 12-person commercial team on brand positioning and messaging architecture; consistency scores in trade audits improved 22 points.

Skills section — what to list

Mirror the skills exactly as they appear in target job ads. The ATS reads this section literally — synonyms hurt match scores.

Brand strategy and positioningP&L ownership (£10m+)ATL/BTL campaign managementNPD and innovation pipelineKantar and Nielsen dataIRI / Circana retail dataCreative agency managementMedia planning (TV, digital, retail media)Shopper marketingConsumer insight commissioningJBP and trade marketing partnershipBrand-tracker and equity measurementPricing and promotional strategyCross-functional commercial partnershipDTC and ecommerce brand-building

Brand Manager-specific CV mistakes that get you binned

× Listing campaigns without brand-health or commercial outcomes. Awareness lift, share points, ROI — at least one of those needs to be there.
× Ignoring P&L. Every UK brand manager role above £55k expects budget ownership and margin accountability. State the number.
× Generic 'led 360 campaigns' bullets. Specify the channel mix, spend and measurable outcome (campaign ROI, awareness, conversion).
× Skipping NPD detail. Hiring managers want to see whether you've taken a product from concept to shelf and what it sold in year one.
× Confusing brand manager with marketing manager. Brand-manager CVs need brand-equity tracking, share data, and packaging/innovation work — not just demand-gen.

Common questions

Do I need to put share data on my Brand Manager CV?: Yes if you're applying to FMCG or large branded businesses, and ideally yes for premium DTC. UK brand-manager hiring managers in 2026 want to see Kantar or Nielsen share-point movement on the brands you owned, because it's the cleanest measure of brand-led commercial impact. If you don't have access to formal share data (smaller brand or category), use proxy metrics: distribution gains in named retailers, ranked sales position, or brand-tracker score shifts. The mistake is omitting all market-context data — without it, your bullets read like media-plan execution rather than brand stewardship.
How do I show creative judgement on a Brand Manager CV?: Through the briefs you wrote and the outcomes the work delivered, not by adjectives. UK hiring managers in 2026 don't want to read 'creative thinker' — they want 'briefed lead agency on brand-platform work delivering 13-point lift in distinctive brand asset recognition'. If you've worked on award-winning campaigns, name the awards (Cannes, Effie, IPA) and your role. If your work hasn't won awards, lean on commercial proof — 3.2x ROI, +1.4 share points, +13% prompted awareness. Creative judgement on a CV is always shown via outcomes, never via self-description.
Should I separate ATL and BTL work on my Brand Manager CV?: Only if you've done meaningful budget ownership in both. UK brand managers in 2026 are expected to be channel-agnostic — the modern brand role spans TV, digital, retail media, shopper, sponsorship and DTC. If your CV silos work into 'ATL achievements' and 'BTL achievements', it dates you. The better structure is by brand-management activity (e.g. 'Brand relaunch', 'NPD launch', 'JBP support'), with channel mix and spend named within each section. That shows hiring managers you think in commercial outcomes, not media-budget categories.