Simge is the Regional Marketing Lead for Innovation at pladis, a leading global snack company that promises happiness to the world with every bite. She leads development, commercialization and launch of innovation across existing brands, such as Flipz chocolate covered pretzels and Turtles chocolate clusters, as well as new brands in the US & Canada. Prior to her innovation role, Simge was a Senior Brand Manager working on Britain’s beloved Cookies & Crackers brands (McVitie’s, Crawford’s, Carr’s, and Jacob’s.)
Before Cookies & Crackers, Simge worked on ‘democratizing luxury’ and launched Godiva Masterpieces, a new product line inspired by iconic chocolates from the boutiques and redesigned for mainstream retailers. Masterpieces has been the most successful launch in the history of Godiva in the CPG business. Simge moved to the pladis North America team from Godiva, pladis’ sister company, where she was a Global Platform Manager on Godiva’s Self-treat business worldwide.
Prior to her career at Godiva & pladis, Simge worked at Reckitt Benckiser for nearly three years. She started on Cepacol sore throat lozenges and then worked on Mucinex Core Congestion, where she re-ignited growth through effective communications leveraging Mr. Mucus whom consumers love to hate, fostering close retailer partnerships and developing a program to grow heavy Mucinex buyers.
In her last role at RB, Simge worked on Lysol/Dettol/Sagrotan in Developed Markets. In this role, she collaborated with marketers across North America, Europe, Australia & New Zealand, developed a strategic plan for Cleaners & Wipes and created programs to launch new products across markets.
Simge is originally from Turkey. She graduated from University of Virginia in 2008 and earned her MBA from NYU Stern School of Business in 2013. She enjoys staying connected to her alma matter and mentoring young marketers. In her spare time, she explores new neighborhoods and restaurants to soak up the energy of New York.
