AKA Communications - Account Director (London)
Date Posted: Friday 19th January 2024
Date Expires: Tuesday 20th February 2024
AKA are looking for an experienced and enthusiastic Account Director, with a genuine love of the hospitality industry. The ideal candidate will have a creative mind for pitching and a level-headed approach to client management. You will be responsible for strategically managing your own group of accounts and should be adept at looking after personalities and reputations within the restaurant and bar sector. You should have good working relationships with relevant journalists, and have the management skills to ensure monthly deliverables are achieved.
The ideal candidate should demonstrate exceptional organisation skills, attention to detail and an energetic proactive nature who will thrive in a fast-paced agency environment; someone who is hungry to advance their passion for writing; print, digital and social media; food, drink and hospitality. This role is to drive client accounts, ensuring that strategies and activities are undertaken to the highest standard, that objectives are being met and that accounts are well managed.
Working closely with the Founding Partners, the Account Director is the senior contact for clients. You will play an integral role in growing the business and shaping its strategic direction. You will be responsible for managing and overseeing mid-level and junior staff to ensure campaigns are delivered and service level agreements are met consistently.
Commercially minded and creative in nature, the Account Director is adept at establishing and maintaining relationships with both clients and the media across all levels. You will direct and lead PR projects and provide strategic-level advice.
As a senior member of the business, you will be responsible for identifying and delivering new business opportunities and growing existing accounts.
Responsibilities:
- Line managing junior and mid-level team members to ensure they meet targets
- Manage PR campaigns and strategies for a range of diverse restaurant clients from conception to completion
- Generate feature placement in appropriate titles
- Work with our in-house events team to manage launch events for media and influencers
- Proposal writing and presentation skills
- Be a brand champion and possess excellent knowledge of the restaurant and bar industry whilst building key relationships
- Deliver coverage across online and offline outlets, leveraging added value from all PR activity
- Own all media relations and to continue to develop and maintain relationships with key journalists
- Monitor AKA brand placement/exposure, ensuring all communication and activity are on-brand
- Work closely with the digital team and brief on all events and launch initiatives
- Champion the Company’s values and brand
- Day-to-day point of contact for high level client contacts ranging from Founders, to Board of Directors
- Building on existing media relationships while creating new contacts (long-lead and short-lead, mainstream media, trade and blogs), working to secure positive coverage for AKA clients in the media
- Maintaining active involvement in and relationships with food /drink /travel /art/ design/lifestyle communities
The Ideal Candidate:
- Proven experience operating in a senior PR position within the hospitality industry
- Proven track record of creating a positive impact on business through implementation of a PR strategy
- Proven commercial experience with working in a fast-paced environment
- Proactive and able to show initiative/ideas to constantly promote the AKA offering
- Creative and strategic thinker with superb writing skills
- Strong established UK F&B and lifestyle press contacts (including restaurant critics and content creators)
- International press contacts desirable
- Strong experience of event management
- Able to identify communication opportunities across multiple media platforms
- Proven leadership and management skills, with the ability to inspire a team by encouraging cooperation, collaboration and partnerships through sharing knowledge, skills and expertise
- Exceptional problem-resolution skills, including the ability to think creatively and prioritise multiple assignments in a dynamic and fast-paced environment
- A sharp eye for detail is essential
- Strong negotiation and delegation skills
- Ability to be flexible with working hours
About AKA Communications:
Here at AKA Communications, we live and breathe great stories about food & drink, travel and lifestyle. Our progressive full-service communications agency works across the hospitality industry, with clients big and small in food and drinks brands; travel and wellness; and restaurants and bars.
This is a varied and exciting role within a dynamic and respected comms agency on an upwards growth curve. Our restaurant clients include Hakkasan, Yauatcha, The Parakeet, The Midland Grand Dining Room, Yannick Alléno at Four Seasons, 10 Greek Street, 20 Berkeley, Akira Back at the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, Julie’s, BiBo, SushiSAMBA, HUMO, Maslow’s, The Sun Tavern and Discount Suit Company.
We are fiercely independent and fully integrated, delivering tailored public relations, marketing consultancy, powerful digital and social media management, synergistic partnerships, high profile event production, and business development.
We strongly believe in a non-hierarchical and inclusive culture here at AKA, we give our team the space to think creatively. We know how editors, journalists and key opinion leaders think and have extensive networks within the media and in the wider industry.
Fun, social and dynamic team working out of Soho offices. Excellent perks
No recruitment agencies
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