East Midlands marketing agency launches hospitality division

Katie King

Katie King & Co., the content, branding, and marketing agency that started during lockdown, has launched its hospitality division in the East Midlands.

Capitalising on the extensive hospitality experience of founder Katie King, the agency offers hotels, restaurants, bars and attractions a selection of specialist marketing services including social media management, graphics, content and copywriting, marketing training and strategic consultation for business recovery.

King launched the company in January and has put several Midlands businesses on the map, including client Lollipop Luxury Parties – gaining recognition from the East Midlands Business Masters Awards shortlist.

Based between Nottingham and Derbyshire, King also serves the Middle East market remotely with presence in the region planned from Q1 2022.

A hospitality marketeer with more than a decade of experience in launching and reviving hotels and restaurants, King has represented some of the world’s most renowned hotels including the QE2 and Burj Al Arab. She is the senior marketing advisor to international hotel management company London Rock Partners, is regularly called upon by international travel press for her industry insight and in 2019 was Highly Commended by the acclaimed hospitality industry publication Hotelier Middle East.
Current projects include a city lodge and historic stately home in the Midlands as well as a luxury resort on Dubai’s iconic Palm Jumeirah.

She said: “There was always a plan to launch the hospitality division of Katie King & Co., but I brought these plans forward in light of current market conditions.

The UK hospitality industry lost £80.8bn of sales in 12 months of COVID-19 and average occupancy levels are at 32% – worse than forecasted and the lowest since hotel benchmarking began in the 1970s.

“A new type of post lockdown guest wants a more engaging online customer journey. They want to book directly rather than through third parties and they want a lot of information about the hotel and the destination instantly. They have certain expectations about their anticipated hotel experience after months without travel and there’s a younger staycation market now too – they’re exploring the country over other short-haul destinations and they’re often seeking Instagramable hotel stays and destinations in which they can make TikToks in.

They’re looking for online boast factor and there are many things that hotels can easily do to achieve this. The lockdown also saw older generations embrace social media more than ever before and this shouldn’t be ignored.”

“The experience that I gained in extremely intense market conditions has stood me in good stead for what we are currently facing. The first part of my career in travel was spent at East Midlands tourism, I was then catapulted into Dubai’s hospitality industry – one of the world’s most competitive hotel markets with lower budgets, supply outstripping demand, extreme seasons, and frequent staff shortages. You have to get smart, creative and budget savvy to ensure that the inbound British guests were choosing your hotel over the 812 others in the same city, and I believe that my toolkit of crisis hospitality marketing tactics really lends value to these services now more than ever.”

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