Reckitt Benckiser : Meet our innovators Barbara Yuste

Over the last 200 years, our innovators have transformed our company and revolutionised our industry for the better. But this is just the start. As we embark on our journey of rejuvenating sustainable growth, we're more inspired than ever to think bigger, act bolder and innovative further than ever before.

Tell us a little more about you...

I started my journey at Reckitt in 2011 in Barcelona, Spain (where I'm from) as a marketing graduate in one of our local fabric softeners brands Flor.

Then I moved to the UK, where I've had the opportunity to do global and local assignments in marketing. I have been very lucky to work across a range of brands and have been working on Vanish since 2019.

Two years ago, I was inspired by my colleagues and Vanish's purpose to make a positive contribution to the planet and went 100% vegan and haven't bought a new garment since (only second hand!).

What does Innovation mean to you?

Innovation for me is all about making people's life easier - whether that's a better performing product that's more convenient or providing a more sustainable option.

What do you think is the greatest innovation of all time?

Being vegan for the last two years, I think the greatest innovation that exist are plant-based substitutes. Linking it back to my definition of innovation, these products are making it easy for vegans to still enjoy the flavours they like while staying true to their personal choice.

Can you tell us more about your area of work? How do you approach innovation?

My job as a GBMM is all about driving the global strategy across all markets and ensuring that it is consistent while applicable to all of them.

I also work with the cross functional Category Development Organisation (CDO) team to develop new product solutions that enable growth.

For the last two years, I've had the privilege to be working on the Vanish purpose journey, which is to Help our clothes live many lives. This my 'North Star' when it comes to innovation.

Working with various teams across Reckitt, we have developed a renovated Vanish pipeline to offer everyone solutions to make their clothes look like new for longer. We understand what makes people throw away clothes and we're giving them tools to make them consider alternatives - like re-wearing, passing on, or buying and selling second hand garments!