About me

I’m an award winning marketer, with over 20 years international experience in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Egypt.
I’ve an MBA and an MSc in marketing, and have worked with brands that are household name across the globe.

In 2015 and 2016, I was selected as one of the UK’s Top 100 Marketers – part of the Vision 100 – the ‘brightest, best, most visionary Marketers in the UK. I was awarded the single most prestigious prize for marketers in Ireland, the ‘Marketing Leader of the Year’ in 2008 by the Marketing Institute of Ireland – Ireland’s community of marketers. In 2012, I was made a Fellow of the Marketing Institute of Ireland for my contribution to marketing and business in Ireland.

I’ve spent €50m on advertising in the last twenty plus years. I ran my first website in 1999. I’ve run €100m eCommerce sites. I’ve done 100+ contact hours of digital marketing teaching in 2016. So, get in touch if you think you can use some of this experience for your brand.

Today, I am of CMO of OpenJaw Technologies, a travel tech firm with clients such as British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Iberian, Hainan Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, Airmiles, Aeroplan and many other major travel brands around the globe. Prior to this, I was Director of Marketing at BMI – British Midland, responsible for marketing to airline brand across Europe post-sale from IAG/British Airways.

I’m the Founder and Programmer of DMX Dublin, the largest digital marketing event in Ireland, and the Programme Manager for the Digital Marketing Executive Programme for the Marketing Institute of Ireland, an exclusive programme for executives to upskill on digital.

I speak extensively on the implications of digital on marketing, as well as being a lecturer on digital topics and airline marketing. In the last few years, I have spoken in IE Graduate School of Business, Madrid, Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, Dublin as well as at conferences in Amsterdam, London and Dublin

I was the Chief Marketing Officer – Europe, 118 Directory Enquiries,the market leader in directory assistance in UK, France, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria and Italy. With a marketing budget of $25m, I was lucky enough to be the creator of a number of television advertising campaigns using the iconic ‘runner’ characters.

Prior to this, I was the Head of Marketing at CityJet / Air France, the number one airline operator in London City Airport, responsible for marketing across Europe.

When I finished my MBA in 2006, I was selected to be Head of Sales and Marketing at Aer Arann, Ireland’s regional airline, responsible for all brand, sales, distribution, PR and eCommerce across its key markets of the UK, Ireland and France.

I was the youngest ever Marketing Manager for Thomas Cook globally in the 1990’s, and by the age of 30, was globetrotting around Asia for the company working in Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand and Japan. Within 5 years, he reported to the global CEO of Thomas Cook.

I moved back to Ireland in the late 1990’s and started working for the poster child for technology and innovation called IONA Technologies – who had just floated on the NASDAQ, and then worked the largest VC funded startup ever in Ireland, Marrakech.

Today, I act as an advisor to a number of hi-tech and eCommerce start-ups in my spare time, as well as motor-race across the UK and Ireland.

I’ve had the wonderful experience of living and working in Ireland, UK, Australia, as well as Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, Sri Lanka, USA.

Colin Lewis - Marketing

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