About Christina McCarthy

Christina McCarthy’s first professional contact with the world of marketing and brand management was certainly novel and certainly not glamourous. In her job as a brand activation manager with Anheuser-Busch in 2013 she liaised directly with bars in New York city, even driving a truck at one point through the streets of Manhattan with a colleague, giving out point of sale material to bar owners- and the occasional beer keg. “I was working for the wholesale distribution arm, so it was not sexy, I was driving a big cargo van in the city,’’ she recalls. She remembers the traffic-inducted stress of it (‘it was a learning experience’), but equally can smile about it now, as her career since then has taken her to many places and situations, which are quite different from those early days.

With impeccable Irish (and Cork) connections, McCarthy has always had an interest in consumer behaviour and why we humans make the choices we do. As a result media advertising (often known as media buying/planning) her eventual career was perfect for her, helping her to combine the interest in consumer psychology, with a passion for great brands. 

There is no doubt great brands have come her way, with stints working at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts (her current employer), Victoria’s Secret and Estee Lauder (through its subsidiary MAC Cosmetics), as well as big New York agencies such as MediaCom. But McCarthy has kept her feet on the ground and acknowledges she somewhat ‘fell’ into the advertising industry. “I ended up loving it, as it tied in so much into consumer psychology,’’ she states. “I just kinda hustled my way up, and somehow I got a media manager’s job at Victoria’s Secret and I think that changed my career, as that was one of the best brands in the world at the time,” she says. 

Before this, her career story, as she tells it, really took a leap forward when she attended UCD Smurfit in 2012 to undertake an MSc in Marketing Practice also known as the Marketing Development Programme, after doing her primary degree in the US. 

While she was nervous when she attended for interview, thinking UCD would not ‘want an American’ as she puts it, things went in the other direction and UCD wanted her and she wanted UCD. She loved the programme and one element of the experience sticks out more than any other- making presentations. She says the course heavily emphasised the ability to present and work with others, and while she says this put her in some stressful situations initially, it stood to her over time. In fact in her advertising roles subsequently, this ability to communicate to an audience, internal or external, is something she calls on again and again. 

With her Cork connections (which come via her Cork-born father), McCarthy considered attending UCC initially, but preferred the range of programmes available at UCD Smurfit. Smurfit cropped up because she didn’t really know what direction to pursue after her undergraduate course at Manhattan College in the US. “I had no idea what I wanted to do,’’ she recalls. Her first job was as an administrator at the prestigious Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital. “It was great at the time, but I still had no idea what I wanted to do, but it worked out as my grandmother was diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer, so I was able to expedite her care as I was at the hospital,” she recalls. But she had a hankering to get into media and marketing, one due to personal interest, but also because her father had a media background with Irish American newspapers and a football bar in Manhattan. 

She particularly notes the Smurfit course fed her curiosity about consumer behaviour. “It was honestly the best programme I could have done,’’ she says. “So it really modelled how you would be working in the environment post graduation,’’ she adds. “You had wonderful people in the class, the head of Amazon Alexa in Australia for instance, another class mate is head of events at Bonhams now, I just worked with some of the most talented people and I just think it pushed me harder and further because everyone was so smart,’’ she explains.

These days she holds the position of VP Global Media at Four Seasons and Resorts, where she buys, plans and places some of the hotel chain’s global advertising, often on digital channels. She admits it’s a challenging job at times, but she now has a team of 10, whereas when she arrived, she was on her own in the role. She finds it highly enjoyable and admits she needs to have empathy and genuine interest in whatever brand she is working with. So, as she jokes, she doesn’t see herself working for a car brand any time soon!

She mainly works from home these days, which is in Norwalk, a city in Western Connecticut. Its ideal as it is a nice part of the world firstly, but she can also be in New York City, to sample its unique buzz, by simply taking a commuter train ride, which leaves her in the Big Apple in about one hour and 20 minutes approximately. She also works sometimes out of Toronto, where her company is headquartered. She admits working for Four Seasons does mean a steady stream of travel, but getting to stay at some of its terrific properties is a pleasant dimension to her travel schedule.  

While some parts of the hotel industry are volatile, she admits the singular focus of her company on luxury and genuine connection keeps it ahead of the game. In terms of what’s next for her, she says she wants to ‘pay it forward’ in terms of helping other people in the industry, particularly younger women in their earlier years. She admits she felt a strong sense of impostor syndrome in her earlier years in advertising, so she figures she understands those making their initial forays in the industry today and wants to give them a helping hand, although getting behind the wheel of a van won’t be needed this time around one presumes.

Insight Track

Reflecting on your time at UCD, what experience stands out as particularly impactful or memorable?

Graduating from the program in '13, it was truly such a rigorous program, therefore to see the finish line with all of my classmates was a treasured moment I can always remember since I traveled back to Dublin for the occasion.

Is there a particular book or song you have carried with you for much of your life?

My friends will laugh but I have always loved Enya, its connected to my passion for Irish culture but 'Only Time' pushes me to always see the future and only time can tell what will be presented to me next.

What's the best piece of advice you've ever received, funny or serious?

They can knock you down but they can never knock you out, it's connected to my determination to get up regardless of failure and keep moving forward.

What's a hobby or activity you've always wanted to try but haven't gotten around to yet?

Tennis would be a large one, my husband and I keep saying we're going to get lessons but never get around to it!

If you could have a conversation with any historical figure, who would it be and what would you ask that person?

With the presidential debate going on now, definitely Kamala Harris - her strength and dignity running to be the first ever woman as the US president has made me so proud to be a woman. I would ask her how she builds her confidence and does not let negativity affect her - it's such a core strength to have conditioned over time and I'd like to ascertain the tools she yielded to build that.

September 2024