Jeffery Bray

Jeffery Bray - Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Retail Management

As a graduate of BU’s Retail Management programme, it’s clear Jeff Bray’s passion for the subject remains as strong as ever. Now a Lecturer in Retailing and Marketing and Programmer Leader for the BA (Hons) Retail Management, Jeff is perfect proof of what our graduates go on to achieve.

After completing his undergraduate degree in Retail Management at BU Jeff decided to build on the industry experience he’d already acquired by becoming a Store Manager for major retailer Halfords. After managing a turnover in excess of £1million in the chain’s Ferndown store, he went on to oversee the closure of the Isle of Wight’s High Street shop and the subsequent building and opening of an out-of-town store. He later managed the chain’s operations in Gloucester, overseeing an overall increase in store profitability of 22 per cent and implementing new working procedures and a full staffing restructure. Alongside his work, Jeff studied part time for an MBA in Retailing from the University of Stirling, specialising in the internationalisation of retailing, which he completed in 2003.

Jeff returned to BU in 2004 this time as a Lecturer in Marketing and International Retailing.  Jeff said:  “I was keen to secure a role in academia to share my passion for the industry and apply my analytical skills to a wide range of business problems at a strategic level. Returning to BU as an academic alongside colleagues who were once my tutors was strange only very briefly and I quickly settled into my new role.

“International retailing is of huge interest to me. It’s a really dynamic area as lots of companies are struggling to make it work and are making very obvious mistakes.” So interesting is this topic to Jeff that he’s become a regular blogger on the subject. Read his views on the latest news and trends in global retailing at: http://jefferybray.blogspot.com/ And its this industry insight has allowed Jeff to design, teach and manage modules in International Retailing, as well as in Services Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, at both Undergraduate and Masters level.

Now a Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Retail Management, Jeff’s work has been widely published in notable journals such as the Journal of Marketing Management, the Journal of Product and Brand Management and the Journal of Business Ethics. Along with his academic research Jeff has also conducted a number of commercially based consultancy projects and regularly provides media comment on retail and marketing issues. He has also presented his work at conferences all over the world.

But his biggest achievement still lies ahead. “Since 2006 I’ve been conducting my doctoral research part time and am hoping to complete it this year. I’m researching the role of ethical considerations in consumer purchasing decisions, which is a hugely relevant topic. It offers a vast area of growth, but also of contradiction and confusion, therefore I’m hoping to contribute strongly to knowledge and understanding to this area.”

And it’s this thirst for knowledge and passion to drive the industry forward that underpins Jeff’s career. “The best thing about my job is the real business challenges that present themselves, combined with engaging with students and our enthusiastic young future leaders.”

Outside of the office, the renovation of a Victorian house, a classic sports car and young twin boys to entertain provide relaxation and additional work by equal measure for Jeff.