Wingstop gets a new top marketer for Canada

Karla Patino is starting a new position as marketing director for Latin America & Canada at Texas-based Wingstop Restaurants.

The Buffalo wing casual dining spot came to Canada in the summer of 2022, and operates eight locations nationally, with plans for a hundred new ones over the course of a decade. Wingstop has 2,200 locations globally, spanning North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

Based out of Miami, Patino is a former senior marketing manager, for Latin America and the Caribbean, for KFC. Prior to that role, she worked as senior manager of category management for RBI-owned QSR Burger King, and manager of field marketing strategy with Chipotle.

In Canada, Pramod Kumar, who joined the chain in 2021, is Wingstop’s head of marketing, formerly handling brand marketing for Burger King and Pizza Hut parent, Redberry.

MediaValet adds CMO

Stephen Midgley is the new chief marketing officer for Vancouver cloud-based digital asset management system firm, MediaValet. He recently worked as VP of marketing for software firm, Invafresh.

Prior to his stint with Invafresh, Midgley worked as chief marketing and operating officer duties for ecommerce platform, Commercebuild, based in Vancouver. Midgley was tasked to lead all aspects of global marketing including messaging and communications, digital marketing, demand generation, channel and alliances marketing, and product marketing.

Hill’s Pet Nutrition taps Canada Goose vet

Sofie Rey has joined Colgate-Palmolive subsidiary Hill’s Pet Nutrition in Toronto, as senior brand manager for Hill’s Science Diet.

Rey was previously the director of brand strategy for Canada Goose. Before joining Canada Goose, Rey was marketing manager for Lancôme Fragrance at L’Oréal.

Empire Club adds senior marketer

Megan Ip is the new senior manager of strategic communications and marketing for thought leaders group and speakers’ forum, Empire Club of Canada. Ip is the co-founder and president of Spectre creative and strategy consultancy, with a client roster that includes Toronto’s Yonge Dundas Square, International Dragon Boat Race Festival, Downtown Yonge BIA and Toronto Chinatown BIA.

Ip is a former senior communications manager for CIO Canada (now, Digital Governance Council).