Costa Coffee global head of consumer data and digital analytics Ed Child has quit the Coca-Cola-owned company after five years to take up a new as-yet-unspecified role.
Child, who has more than 25 years’ experience across retail, financial services and ecommerce sector, began his career in GIS and store location analytics, working on the practical application of data to real-world commercial decisions.
He progressed from hands-on analytical roles into senior leadership, including heading up global customer insights for Walmart in the US, establishing marketing effectiveness and advanced analytics capabilities at Asda in the UK, and designing Studio Retail Group’s first enterprise-wide data strategy.
At Costa Coffee, Child has led a significant transformation in how data is structured, governed, and consumed, underpinning the company’s personalisation and AI strategy, directly supporting growth in digital performance.
The Costa Club loyalty programme, which has about 6 million members in the UK, sits at the heart of the firm’s data strategy. It is currently managed by Omnicom agency Rapp.
During his time at the company, Child founded and then led the Costa Data & Analytics Community (CDAC), bringing data employees together across the business, while also championing data apprenticeships.
In a LinkedIn post, Child said: “Well, five years has flown by and my time at Costa Coffee has come to a close. It’s been an absolute blast and looking back, am super proud on what we have achieved in the consumer, digital, data and AI space in global digital.
“Living in Yorkshire and working in London has been great, and feel I made the most of my London time. However looking forward to a new role closer to home and more to share on that soon.
“Finally, a massive thank you to everyone at Costa over the years. Importantly, I couldn’t have done this without my amazing team, will miss you loads and know you’ll go on to do amazing things at Costa and beyond. Thank you for all your support and hard work, you should be super proud of collectively what you’ve achieved. Onwards to the next data/AI adventure.”
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