My Business Experience
It's hard to pick out highlights but here are just a few of the things I’ve gotten up to over my 30+ year career.
You can also find me on LINKEDIN.
The High Pressure Corporate Years: marketing, communications & PR
In my early 20s, I rose up the ranks at Computacenter, the biggest IT reseller in Europe, with 2500 staff and 20 offices around the UK. This was London in the 90s so big banks were creaming it, and it was all shoulder pads and cocaine (not me obvi). As Marketing Exec to the Head of Marketing, I had an annual budget of over £1million for promotional goods, managed the company private island and hot air balloon, ran the sponsorship deals with Notts County Cricket Club and Halifax Rugby League Club, took all new business calls and helped to run three conferences a year with 300+ staff.
(After 2 ½ years there, I decided to take 6 months off, travelled around Africa and got married on the Comoros Islands to my first husband).
Before I was 30, I held two high pressure Marketing Manager roles where I managed large teams and reported directly to the CEO. At Oscar Faber, the 2nd largest Engineering consultancy in the UK (16 branches and 800 staff) I was tasked with rebranding the whole company - in the days when we still had printed headed paper and envelopes! When I said I was leaving in order to emigrate, I was offered a board position and to name by price, but I declined. I was burnt out and done.
After separating from my hubby, I moved to New Zealand and ran a backpackers in Queenstown for a year (ha) where I bungy jumped, hang glided, snowboarded, hiked and skydived, before setting up my own Marketing Consultancy, which I ran on and off for 10 years.
From that time onwards, I purposefully focused on only working on projects that make a difference to communities, the environment and wellbeing - no more helicopter trips to Paris for me!
Running my own marketing consultancy I worked on some cool projects including a winning bid proposal for Northland for the rugby world cup, various PR campaigns for wonderful local tourism businesses and the Northland Kauri Festival
The Tourism Specialist Years:
PR, marketing, comms, events, regional economic development, small business advice
One of the loveliest jobs I had was in one of the most beautiful places. In the Bay of Islands, New Zealand I worked for three years for Destination Northland, the tourism arm of the local government economy team. I developed the region’s first strategies for promoting tourism, events and conferences to the domestic market. During this time I established strong relationships with the media and achieved over $600,000 worth of free coverage in one year. I mean it wasn’t a hard sell - we invited journalists for free holidays and activities like sailing and dolphin watching!
After a few years I decided I didn’t want to work full time. I wanted to get out and about and enjoy the local sights more. As a specialist in tourism I resurrected the consultancy I had started previously in Rotorua and had various contracts - including government-funded ones to support Maori tourism and major events.
I supported 100s of small businesses during this time - helping them with 1:1 mentoring and putting together marketing action plans.
During this time I also met my second husband and had my two beautiful daughters. Working for myself wasn’t so easy with little ones. We moved to the ‘big smoke’ of Auckland and I became the main breadwinner.
I landed a job for the Auckland Council ‘supercity’ and was the comms lead for the City Transformations and Environmental Strategy and Policy departments. Projects and teams I looked after included Heritage (Built and Natural), Built Environment, Air Quality, Auckland Conversations and City Centre Masterplan.
I then moved to the Auckland Tourism, Events & Economic Development teams and among other things, looked after the communications for Auckland’s largest cultural festivals – Diwali, Lantern and Pasifika, which attracted over 350,000 visitors over multiple days.
Some memories from my time as a Communications Officer for Forest & Bird including blessing the return of Taiko to Great Barrier Island, fun community days and the Kauri Dieback campaign
Conservation Campaigning
For four years I worked part time as Auckland Communications Officer for Forest & Bird - New Zealand’s leading conservation organisation and ENGO. I was a voice for nature and ran various campaigns to raise awareness that New Zealand wasn’t so ‘pure and green’ after all. The biggest campaign I ran was around Kauri Dieback which involved many conservation groups coming together and resulted in the closing of a major national park in the Waitakeres. It’s like the equivalent of closing Dartmoor to the public in order to stop the spread of disease to the local flora and fauna.
Economic Recovery and Regional Development
Made in Devon - For four years I set up and ran Made in Devon, one of the biggest economic development programmes ever delivered by Devon County Council ( the budget was £400k+). I developed the brand and then launched the scheme and promoted member businesses through tv, radio and digital ad campaigns and OOH (out of home advertising on billboards, buses, bus stops, sports stadium).
I recruited 65 members onto the scheme and what I particularly enjoyed was building relationships and a community with many of these business owners -helping them connect and collaborating with them to run some really special networking events.
( the first year was at the same time as relocating from New Zealand to the UK, single handedly buying a home and settling my children into new schools and a new culture - during a global pandemic. And at the same time as my chiron was returning - so lots of ‘lovely’ lessons about self worth, Thanks universe! Can you imagine the state of my amygdala!)
I’ve done lots of other roles including lots of event management, conferences (Paris, Bahrain, London, Rotorua) and a lot of business support but these are just a few highlights.
I hold an Honours degree in History from King’s College, University of London and like to continue my professional development. I undertook a Certificate in Prince 2 Agile Project Management in 2022 and attend regular marketing and digital marketing courses including ‘Using AI for everyday business’.
Alongside this I have also been an avid spiritual wisdom seeker.
