Tara Tomes

Passionate about PR, people and paying-it-forward. 

Having been both agency and client-side prior to EAST VILLAGE., Tara has worked with local independent retailers, internationally renowned fashion brands, acclaimed entertainment and event venues, large scale exhibitions, and everything in between. She founded EAST VILLAGE. in 2013 out of a passion for collaboration and was keen to create the kind of agency she would be proud to be a part of. Over the years, introducing flexible working, creating ongoing training and development programmes, pushing young talent to the fore and focusing on diversity and inclusion through the TeamEV Charter, Tara ensures that the agency lives by its strapline of delivering PR with personality.

Truly passionate about fashion and retail, and helping brands thrive and survive in a changing climate, Tara sits on the Midlands Retail & Hospitality Forum (MRF) committee and co-founded Birmingham Sales and Events Forum. She’s dedicated to giving back and sharing her expertise, and is regularly invited to speak at events and on webinars. She has a number of upcoming webinars and workshops, as well as slots as a mentor for you people looking to get into PR and the media.

Tara is passionate about giving young people the opportunity to enter the world of PR, which can be seen through EV’s Grow Your Own internship programme. She’s also an advocate for making the PR industry more diverse and has ongoing work into how to drive an anti-racist movement across PR and marketing. Linked to this, Tara sits on the Black Leaders Group; a collective of leaders from across Birmingham who have come together to share expertise and best practice, helping provide a footprint that will make all businesses more ethical and diverse.

With a strong belief that we should help those who need it most, Tara is a founding trustee of Let’s Feed Brum, which works with local hospitality brands to supply food and drink to people living on the streets, as well as street mentoring to help signpost them to the great services across the city. She also sits on the management committee for iShelter, which manages Tabor House, a Birmingham-based accommodation project for people experiencing homelessnes, and is a patron for SIFA Fireside.

Alongside EAST VILLAGE. and charity endeavours, Tara also provides PR Consultancy to small business owners, helping them to find the confidence to Power up their PR.