Holly Dowling Email & Phone Number

Bury St Edmunds, Gb

Chedburgh, England, United Kingdom

Responsible for managing confirmed bookings from contract stage to post-event follow-ups, whilst also building a professional relationship with customers to increase the potential of rebooking events, working alongside and coordinating various internal departments and external contractors to ensure all of the customers’ requests are met and that relevant information is communicated appropriately, and assisting the Operations Team on high-profile events.• Work for Restaurant Associates as a catering and hospitality contractor for IWM Duxford and act as the broker between client restrictions and customer requirements• Organise smaller meetings, formal dinners, large scale conferences, exhibitions and Christmas parties at multiple locations across the site, for customers that include AstraZeneca, NHS, Aston Martin and Scania• Assist in the AirShow planning and operations for both pilots catering and VIP hospitality, whilst also managing event staff and acting as Team Leader across the weekend• Conduct site-visits and final details meetings with customers to finalise every aspect of their event in order to create detailed planning documents • Liaise with both internal departments (including the Executive Head Chef and Operational Team) and external contractors (including Airfield Operations, Security and Museum Curators) to ensure the smooth running of an event• Actively upsell additional products and services during the event planning process• Create and update PO documents with event costs to ensure profit margin is being met• Conduct weekly reports that focus on company Salesforce compliance, finance processes and debt management• Assist the Operations Team in the running of high-profile events, by acting as the main point of contact for the customer as well as a Team Leader responsible for briefing, training and managing event staff• Consistently hit individual KPI targets that focus on overall event revenue and personal upsell contribution per quarter

Cambridgeshire, England, United Kingdom

Responsible for managing confirmed bookings from contract stage to on-the-day operations (including conducting multiple planning meetings, inviting couples/clients in for menu tasting events and chasing payments), whilst also building a professional relationship with clients to increase customer satisfaction and trust, working alongside and coordinating various departments to ensure all of the clients requests are met and that relevant information is communicated appropriately, and managing the Wedding Coordinator and Casual Operations team both prior to the wedding day and on the day itself.• Conducted pre-wedding planning meetings with couples and clients to finalise every aspect of their wedding/event (including timings throughout the day, food and beverage aspects, and operational planning) in order to complete detailed planning documents to be used by all other departments• Organised bi-annual menu tasting events and manage associated operational aspects whilst also assisting couples with any questions they may have and collating relevant feedback on the evening• Actively upsold additional products and services during the wedding planning process• Responsible for managing the final invoice process and ensuring final payments are paid on time• Managed the allocations of weddings amongst the wider team, including the Wedding Coordinator, casual operations team, and external suppliers• Responsible for the direct line management of the Wedding Coordinator and the allocation of their tasks whilst also providing training and development opportunities• Assisted with managing the rotas for casual staff and creating operational wedding day plans to ensure all weddings are fully manned• Conducted on-the-day staff briefings to ensure the smooth running of the wedding• Assisted the Sales team at Wedding Showcases to help provide prospective leads the chance to experience what the venue has to offer and answer any questions they may have

Wokingham, England, United Kingdom

• Created as an online portfolio to showcase personal development within the Wedding Industry • Use social media to engage and network with suppliers from the industry to enhance professional reputation, while also engaging with a community of over 3,500 followers • Research recent wedding-related trends to create popular and useful online content

Old Windsor, Berkshire, United Kingdom

Responsible for actively converting wedding and special event enquiries into confirmed sales, building a professional relationship with clients to increase customer satisfaction and trust, working alongside and coordinating departments to ensure all of the clients requests are met, orchestrating on-the-day operations, and client handovers to the Operational Manager. • Ensured the attainment of annual sales targets (converted over £64,000 worth of wedding enquiries within the first month following the completion of training)• Coordinated the initial response for Covid-19 related wedding postponements and event cancellations• Acted as Christmas Executive, which resulted in exceeding the Christmas cover target by 20% for 2019 • Used independent knowledge and conducted competitor analysis to suggest new and innovative ideas associated with both the wedding and special events packages • Acted as the Online Marketing Specialist tasked with improving wedding venue listings, and capturing real-time shareable content for social media, resulting in high quality lead generation• Part of the team that won the Guides for Brides Customer Service Awards 2020/2021 • Organised and conducted venue site visits for prospective clients • Met and communicated with clients to finalise every aspect of their wedding/event to ensure a high level of client satisfaction• Worked alongside a number of different departments ensuring all client requests were met • Coordinated the larger bi-annual weekend and intimate mid-week Wedding Showcases with different departments and recommended suppliers

Waddesdon, England, United Kingdom

Responsible for converting wedding and event enquiries (for three separate venues) into confirmed sales, building relationships with clients to increase customer approval, working alongside and coordinating with a variety of departments across multiple venues to ensure all of the clients requests are met, and organising on-the-day operations resulting in the successful completion of an event.• Consistently attained and exceeded monthly and annual sales targets • Created a new strategy for Christmas 2018, which resulted in a revenue increase of over 50% • Conducted in-depth competitor analysis to recommend new ideas for both the wedding and events packages and physical venue renovations • Assisted the advertising and marketing department by providing input in the design of print aspects and online listings, and captured real-time content for social media • Organised and conducted site visits for prospective clients (across all three venues)• Met and communicated with clients to finalise every aspect of their wedding/event day Assisted The Bespoke Wedding Company in coordinating the large scale, annual Wedding Inspiration Day and coordinated the annual, intimate Wedding Venue Showcase

Maidenhead, England, United Kingdom

Responsible for the generation of leads and converting them into confirmed sales, creating a relationship with clients to finalise all aspects of their wedding day, working alongside a variety of departments and external suppliers to ensure all client needs were met, managing on-the-day operations to ensure successful events.• Consistently reached and surpassed monthly and annual sales targets • Implemented a new enquiry process that included adjustments in the initial response and chase strategies, resulting in an increase of converted leads • Created new bespoke packages using information from client feedback and competitor analysis• Organised and conducted venue show-rounds to prospective clients • Met and communicated with couples to finalise every aspect of their wedding day/weekend • Created advertising and marketing strategies that focused on lead generation • Coordinated independent monthly wedding venue showcases and worked with an external Wedding Fair company, “Captivating Events”, in the organisation of bi-annual wedding fairs

Responsible for organising and creating professional projects based on client briefs that resulted in the use of images for marketing and advertising purposes.• Provided commercial photography for Fredrick’s Hotel, Restaurant & Spa, Ellie Sanderson Bridal Boutique, Benzie Free Range Eggs, and Coventry City Handball Club

Beaconsfield, England, United Kingdom

Responsible for maintaining an exceptional customer service reputation through consulting and styling brides, the organisational administration and client relations with regards to appointments, assisting with in-house fittings, and the designing and updating of the website and the Ellie Sanderson Seasonal Outlet social media pages.• Constantly ensured the attainment of monthly sale targets and positive professional reputation• Identified as the team member for the largest number of sales and 5* reviews on Guides for Brides for the last quarter of 2015 • Acted as operational Manager during the 2015 National Wedding Show• Coordinated with event executives and external suppliers during the Suzanne Neville 2016 Songbird Collection Launch at Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons • Assisted in the organisation of couture catwalks at a wide range of high-profile wedding industry events (including the Suzanne Neville 2016 Songbird Collection Launch at Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, the Spring 2016 Wedding Inspiration Day at Waddesdon Manor and the Launch Party for Ellie Sanderson’s Seasonal Outlet) • Preserved excellent customer service reputation which resulted in the boutique’s “Highly-Commended” win for 5* Customer Service at the Guides for Brides Awards 2016 • Managed the Ellie Sanderson Seasonal Outlet social media pages, which included the creation of brand related content

Responsible for maintaining a high level of professionalism through the development of client relationships, assisting at wedding-related photo shoots (both operationally and photographically) and supporting the production and editing of images.• Initiated and maintained communication with potential clients to arrange appointments and photo shoots • Managed multiple pre-wedding, engagement and boudoir shoots• Acted as photographic editor by coordinating the final production stages which included quality control assessments

Coventry, England, United Kingdom

• Gained hands on experience in the organisation of an event (from research and planning to the operational stages) • Increased knowledge of a variety of areas within the Wedding Industry through networking and shadowing professional individuals• Used research skills and previous knowledge to determine current mainstream trends in order to identify “Alternative” Wedding options and vendors• Sourced vendors for specific Wedding related categories to ensure the inclusion of a diverse range of wedding industry professionals • Assisted in the physical assembly and decoration of the venue and ensured the supplier table plan met the stalls needs without disrupting the visual flow of the event

Bachelor Of Arts - Ba, Photography

A-Levels, Photography, Media, Biology

Gcse'S, 11 A*-C