Pinterest has appointed Fintan Gillespie as Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, filling a post vacant since Caroline Orange-Northey left the business in the summer. He starts on 18 September and will be based in London, reporting to the international function run by Greg Owens the VP of International Enterprise Sales.
Gillespie arrives from Snap, where he spent close to a decade, most recently as Global Director of Ad Partnerships. Prior to that position, he ran Snap’s UK sales business and its EMEA gaming vertical. Before Snap, he was an agency lead at Google in the UK. His brief at Pinterest is to focus on the local market, advertiser and agency relationships, and revenue growth in what the company describes as one of its most important international markets.
Pinterest’s second-quarter results showed revenue above $1.1bn, up 18% year on year, and 640 million monthly active users, up 11%, its twelfth consecutive quarter of record users. European revenue grew 12%. More than 80% of monthly users are outside North America, which supports investing in international sales leadership, and the company points to Levi’s, Primark and Samsung among the brands active on the platform in the UK. It also opened a new London office at Oxford Circus over the summer, which the Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, inaugurated.
“The UK is a strategically important market for Pinterest and a key part of our broader international growth story. Fintan is a highly respected commercial leader with deep experience across digital advertising, strong market relationships and a clear understanding of what brands and agencies need from platforms today. As we continue to scale our business in the UK and Ireland, his leadership will be instrumental in deepening our local market presence, strengthening our partner relationships and unlocking the significant opportunity ahead.”
Greg Owens the VP of International Enterprise Sales.
“Pinterest has built a uniquely differentiated platform for users and advertisers alike, engineered to move people from inspiration to real-life action. What excites me most about this role is the opportunity to build on the strong foundations already in place in the UK and Ireland and work with the team, our agency partners and advertisers to help more brands connect with people on Pinterest in relevant and meaningful ways.”
Fintan Gillespie, Managing Director for the UK and Ireland
Outside work, Gillespie mentors and invests in startups, and once drove overland from Sydney to Dublin through 44 countries to raise money for mental health charities.
