Purplebricks has appointed the former O2 marketer Ian Cafferky (pictured) as its new Chief Marketing Officer. Ian will be replacing Ben Carter who is moving on to take up a new position at Dunelm in the New Year.

The announcement comes just 48 hours are his predecessor, Ben Carter, announced he’d quit to join retailer Dunelm.

Ian will join in February. His remit will cover all aspects of marketing strategy and execution, focusing on continuing to build national brand fame as well as emphasising local relevance and Purplebricks’ digital-first approach.

Ian is currently Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for SailGP – the sailing Grand Prix which sees eight nations go head-to-head in challenges across the world. Prior to this, Ian was Director of Brand and Marcoms at O2 for five years where he achieved 12 consecutive quarters of growth.

Ian was also Chief Brand and Commercial Officer at Manchester City FC, coinciding with Abu Dhabi’s investment in the team. In this role, Ian led the club’s move into multimedia, recasting content commissioning, social media vision, fan segmentation and CRM to drive bottom line growth.

Carter’s Corrie

Cafferky will arrive with much to do. His predecessor’s efforts including a partnership with Coronation Street which saw the Rovers Return up for sale as part of the soap’s storyline, its Team GB sponsorship with ‘Home Support’ artwork appearing on over 30,000 Purplebricks For Sale boards around the UK and the launch of its new brand ‘Let’s Get You Sold’ campaign, featuring comedian Mo Gilligan.

Explaining his decision to join the company, Ian says: “I love working in fast-paced and dynamic environments.  I have a deep understanding of business transformation, having started my career at Accenture, and combine this with my experience as a marketeer to make activity relevant, surprising and brilliant for customers. I look forward to drawing on both these skill sets as I join the amazing team at Purplebricks.”

Vic Darvey (pictured), Purplebricks CEO says: “We’re delighted that Ian will be joining the business in the new year. His combination of business transformation acumen and results-led marketing make him a great fit for Purplebricks. I also want to thank Ben Carter for the brilliant work he’s delivered, together with the whole marketing team, over the last fourteen months. We have the strongest brand in the industry and Ian has a great platform to build on.”