Gill Smith has spent more than 25 years working in the FMCG sector after qualifying as a chartered accountant. Her early career was in various senior finance roles in the wine and spirits industries before moving into retail in 2006 when she joined The Perfume Shop.

Gill spent eight years as Chief Financial Officer across the A.S. Watson Group delivering ambitious turnaround plans for Superdrug and Savers before being appointed Managing Director of The Perfume Shop in 2014. Gill is passionate about bringing back excitement into buying and owning perfume, and is adapting The Perfume Shop’s offline and online retail experience to deliver this for customers.

Gill is a Retail Week Be Inspired Ambassador; a Director of The Fragrance Foundation, the UK’s fragrance industry educational body; and a trustee of The Jim Jackson Foundation, supporting disadvantaged youth into business.

Any spare time she might have is split between London and Kent with her husband Mark, improving her golf, baking and unsuccessfully trying to grow wildflowers.