Paddy Power’s former head of PR joins Lyst

Online fashion site Lyst has brought in Paddy Power’s former head of PR, Rory Scott, as VP of communications.

Launched in London in 2010, Lyst says it connects more than 40 million shoppers globally with over 12,000 designers and stores, including Burberry, Valentino, Alexander McQueen, Harrods and Neiman Marcus.

Scott’s hire is the first high profile appointment by Lyst CMO Christian Woolfenden, the former MD and CMO at Paddy Power, who joined the fashion site in 2015.

Scott and Woolfenden worked together for three years at the betting company. Together they delivered some of the industry’s “most mischievous campaigns”, including sponsoring NBA legend Dennis Rodman’s ‘basketball diplomacy’ trip to North Korea, Paddy’s attempt to dethrone Sepp Blatter as FIFA President and kick-starting the Rainbow Laces campaign to ‘get behind’ gay footballers.

Woolfenden said: “Rory was responsible for delivering some of the biggest and boldest campaigns ever to come out of Paddy Power, and we’re looking forward to bringing this disruptive energy to the fashion space. I see Rory’s appointment as a key step towards Lyst becoming a global household name.”

In his new role at Lyst, Scott will lead on comms strategy and campaigns in the US, the site’s principal market.

Scott said of his appointment: “The team at Lyst have spent years perfecting the product and honing the shopping experience so I’m delighted to be joining at a time when marketing the brand will take centre stage. Working again with Christian is very exciting and I’m really looking forward to straddling both New York and London to help drive the brand forward.”