Over the past few years (post Covid), I have had the privilege of working with a diverse range of experiential agencies in freelance roles from Project Director to Senior Producer. This period has been marked by a diverse range of projects including:* Producing a series of festival activations (All Points East, TRNSMT, Wireless, YNOT, Boardmasters) * Leading a cross-function team of 14 to deliver a complex campaign of 2,000+ retail activations across a 3-month period* Managing a calendar of nightclub activations (up to 10 per week) involving product demonstrations and sales * Producing a PR stunt creating valuable PR content and resulting in the distribution of 50,000 chocolate bars to commuters over 2 days at train stations

Like many of my peers, Covid forced me to look at opportunities away from the event industry. Setting up an online and bricks and mortar "bottle shop" - to indulge my passion for good beer again - taught me new skills including e-commerce, email marketing and social media whilst also putting years of budget management, staffing & training, logistics and operations experience to good use.I'm incredibly proud of the community we created around the shop. From our monthly run club to regular "Meet the Brewer" and beer education events, we truly created a brand synonymous with first class customer experience (5 stars on Google reviews no less) as well as the broadest and most diverse range of beer in Kent. Ultimately, faced with fierce competition and reduced consumer spending, we made the decision to not re-new our lease in July 2024.

Initially hired as an Account Director to head up the agency's biggest account, transforming a single project into a complex, multi-faceted campaign, encompassing festivals, retail activations, pop-up shops, and new territory launches, resulting in over 40,000 new consumers into their ecosystem. Managed and mentored the account and project teams, overseeing all aspects of research, strategy development, creative direction, production, budgets and relationship management with internal and external stakeholders. Cultivated and maintained strong relationships with prominent clients, including Adidas, Carlsberg, Asics, and Tommy Hilfiger, delivering tailored solutions to meet their marketing briefs.Instituted agency best practices, establishing clear processes for internal teams to foster strong client relationships and ensure flawless campaign execution.

Decided to pursue a career closer to home in Tunbridge Wells that indulged my passion for craft beer, spearheading The Beer Boutique’s third retail location, overseeing all aspects of store operations.

In my role as Activation Director I was responsible for understanding what success looked like for our many PR, advertising, event and shopper agency partners and ensuring all stakeholders, from our Activation account team through to the field staff on the front line, understood and delivered on this vision. As an Activation team, it wasn't just about promotional staff supply and often included production elements, risk assessments, logistics and reporting. A highlight of my time at Kreate was a 4 day pop-up shop at the European Aquatic Championships for headline sponsor Arena, where our team exceeded the client’s sales target by 17% generating £300K in extra revenue over 4 days. Clients included (but were certainly not limited to!) Arena, Puma, Co-Op, Stella Artois, Sky, Tough Mudder, Nationwide and Travelex.

Rejoined the SMP team to further develop the in-house staffing proposition of quality and excellence and to streamline current processes to increase productivity and time efficiences. Developments included an online registration system including being one of the first agencies with a Facebook application for registration and the implementation of an online database and payroll solution.A major achievement during my tenure was the implementation of a field management and reporting system which allowed us to strategically position the staffing operation into field marketing and subsequently win a £150K project, which developed into an account worth over £500K in 2 years.A key part of the role was the promotion of the staffing department in all new experiential pitches, the involvement of which led to securing major contracts worth approx £3.6 million.I am proud to have been part of the smp team that won IPM Agency of the Year in 2012 as well as 12 other major awards, from ‘MAA Best Experiential Marketing Led Campaign’ to an IPM Gold for ‘Brand Experience’.Client rosta included Kimberley Clark (Andrex, Kleenex), Japan Tobacco International (Amber Leaf, Holborn), Church & Dwight (Arm & Hammer, Batiste, Femfresh) and Mapa Spontex (Billy Boy Condoms)

Reporting directly to the Managing Director and the Client Services Director, my role as Head of Staffing Operations was to ensure quality was at the forefront of all staffing operations and that the staffing team of 4 were developed from staff bookers into account handlers, with an eye on profitability, client servicing and delivering excellence.From people management and motivating the team to strategic thinking and taking total responsibility for financial performance, the role required extremely strong management and delegation skills and dynamism in a fast paced and often reactive environment. Clients included; The Bodyshop, Carlsberg, Maxxium, P&G, Timberland, Cafe Direct, L’Oreal, Heineken, GlaxoSmithKline, Marks & Spencer, British Gas, TK Maxx, Nestle, Perrier, Bernard Matthews and Warburtons.Reason for leaving: BEcause office relocation to Berkshire.

Recruited by SMP to bring my experience and knowledge of the Promotional Staffing & Experiential industries and to set up an internal Staffing Department to service SMP's experiential team.The procedure involved the setting up of all the legal, procedural and contractual requirements, payroll, databasing, service charters, rate cards plus the immediate interviewing, recruitment, training and management of 300 field staff & 10 Regional Managers, all within a 6 week period. Immediate result was the delivery of c.8000 staffing days between August - December 2009 with a staff retention rate of 92%.Reason for leaving: Temporary contract and new career opportunity

Due to increased demand for my Event Management services, I founded theFarmyard, a promotional staffing agency covering the South West UK. Increased turnover 100% yr on yr, with final year turnover at £300K. Handled all aspects of the business from recruiting promotional staff, securing new business, financial planning and budgeting, pitch writing and presenting, campaign planning and logistics, staff booking and client liaison. Promotional staff database of 800 personnel.Clients included many of the UK’s top Brand Experience agencies (LIME, Candour, SENSE, TigerRed, Ann Savva, MASH Marketing) as well as First Capital Connect, Mothercare and Early Learning Centre.

A move from London to Somerset led to various Event Manager roles "out in the field" for various experiential agencies, representing many leading brands including Liptons, Waitrose, Cadbury's, Warburtons, Nesquick and Nescafe to name but a few. The role took me all over the UK, covering new store launches to music and food festivals, and involved managing promotional teams of up to 10 staff, set up and derig of activation areas, venue liaison, stock control, vehicle management and reporting.

Full time account manager responsible for key accounts such as Interbrew, Whyte & Mackay, Philips, FIAT, Warburtons and Proctor & Gamble as well as Publicis' sister PR agency. Duties included client liaison, budget formation, logistics and operational planning and supplier management. Also involved in Arc Worldwide staff newsletter and in house radio station.

Starting initially as an Account Executive and moving up to Account Manager. Managed accounts for Dairy Crest, Gerber Foods (Ocean Spray, Welch’s) Palmolive, Heinz, Smirnoff and Seagrams. All aspects of account management undertaken, as well as management of promotional radio campaigns including competition and presenter / pre-recorded trail writing, prize sourcing and negotiation and airtime evaluation