Rhizome broadens SME offer with rebrand

Rhizome PR has rebranded to Rhizome Media as it expands beyond media relations to include social media campaigns and community management work for SME clients. Rhizome, which was founded by ex-journalists Dominic Hiatt and Jonny Stevens in 2008, provides a range of services to SMEs and “start-ups on tight budgets”. These include website creation, SEO and content marketing, […]

Just Beauty UK hires Kez Barnaby for comms

Kez Barnaby, a former account manager for Twitter, has joined e-tailer and shopping destination Just Beauty UK as marketing and brand manager. In her new role, Barnaby will oversee all brand and comms activity for the brand including social, PR, press, content and creative. She will report to Just Beauty’s CEO, Ben White. Speaking about […]

KPPR to promote heat radio presenter Sarah Powell

KPPR has been chosen to handle the publicity for TV and radio presenter Sarah Powell. Powell has her own show on heat radio, with past guests including Adele, Calvin Harris, Ed Sheeran and RuPaul, as well as a presenting role on ITV’s This Morning, where she discusses entertainment features. She also writes for Heat magazine, […]

The AA briefs Headland Consultancy

The AA’s financial services arm has hired Headland to handle its corporate and product communications, following a competitive pitch. Headland will relaunch AA’s financial services brand, build the the company’s reputation as a trusted financial partner and promote its suite of products. Last year, the AA signed a 10-year partnership with the Bank of Ireland in the UK […]

Media specialist White joins IFC Advisory

IFC Advisory, the investor and media relations agency set up by Graham Herring in February last year, has hired Newgate Threadneedle’s Alex White as a media specialist. White joins Herring, a former founder of Threadneedle Communications, and co-founder Tim Metcalfe to enhance the agency’s media offering. A former Fleet Street journalist, he will focus on supporting clients with their media […]

H+K launches behavioural insights team

Hill+Knowlton Strategies (H+K) has launched a behavioural insights and strategies team, under the leadership of Matt Battersby, the co-head of its financial and professional services division. The new division will “apply analysis of human behaviour to communications”, using H+K’s new behavioural comms model SMARTER, which brings together seven methods “by which communications can influence behaviour.”  H+K’s new unit, which […]

Retail discounts: how PRs should respond

The line between promotional seasons in retail has become blurred. Who can tell where Black Friday begins and the summer sale ends when there is a concoction of mid-season discounts in between, both online and off? And how should PRs respond in this unpredictable environment? We asked comms experts what they think about the trend. According to […]

The Zeitgeist Agency launches European division

Music PR agency The Zeitgeist Agency, which handles the PR for the Reading and Leeds festivals, has launched a new European division, Zeitgeist Europe, with three new clients, including the Roskilde Festival in Denmark. Aimi Lewis-Mattock, who has worked at the agency for four years, will head up Zeitgeist Europe. She said: “Many publications want to talk […]

Former DADA chief Laura McIlquham joins Beattie

Laura McIlquham, former head of PR for Glasgow-based PR, design and events agency DADA, has joined creative comms group Beattie to take on a senior account director role in Scotland. McIlquham has more than 15 years’ PR experience and she will work with Scottish director Joanne Spence and her 50-strong team on the day-to-day management […]

Homestay.com calls in Four Communications

Four Communications has been chosen to handle the UK PR for Homestay.com, an online marketplace for hosted accommodation. Homestay.com offers accommodation for travellers where the host is present. It has more than 50,000 hosts offering places to stay in some 150 countries, and enables travellers to stay in the home of a local resident while they […]