Obituary: Creenagh Lodge

Creenagh graduated in Archaeology and Anthropology from Cambridge and joined advertising agency Pritchard Wood in the 60s, when research was very much about quantitative ticks or crosses. She was one of the pioneers of using group discussions (today’s focus groups) as a means of teasing out fuller reactions to evolving advertising and product concepts.

In 1972, two new agencies emerged out of Pritchard Wood: advertising agency Boase Massimi Pollitt and Craton Lodge and Knight – CLK. Creenagh was courted by both, but chose to join David Craton and Don Knight in forming the latter: a rare female leader in an industry that was still male-dominated.

CLK was one of the UK’s first agencies to specialise in developing new products, rather than doing it as an adjunct to advertising or other services. As such it was very successful, improving the conventional one in ten new product success rate to nearer one in two.

Creenagh was a visionary, combining great research talent with great insight – before that word became a marketing term.

Two hugely successful FMCG innovations based on that insight were Cadbury’s Wispa, and the transformation of Dettol from an old-fashioned carbolic disinfectant into the multi-product cleaning franchise of today.

As the company evolved from developing new products to developing new brands, she trailblazed the field of nation branding, working with New Zealand in the 70s and 80s, and later creating the ‘Britain brand’ for Visit Britain.

She became chairman of CLK and subsequently its successor Corporate Edge, retiring when the latter sold to Photon in 2007.

Aside from her talents and professional achievements, she was a remarkable person.

The word most commonly found in the many tributes to her was: inspiring. She was certainly that, and also both modest and compassionate … a rare talent and admirable human being.