Global self-service ticketing platform Eventbrite has brought in Nelson Bostock's Bethan Thomas to head up its PR in the UK and Ireland.

Bethan, who joins as senior comms manager, has been briefed to help potential customers organising events understand how they can best use Eventbrite to manage their ticketing or registrations.

She will work as part of Eventbrite's 17-strong team based in London, and will report to Terra Carmichael, head of global corporate comms at Eventbrite, based in San Francisco.

Bethan said: "Eventbrite is a technology company that is giving every event organiser, big or small in any area you can think of, the ability to manage their tickets and registrations in a really simple and cost-effective way.

"I've been lucky enough to work with some great technology brands over the years. Eventbrite is growing incredibly fast here in the UK so it's a fantastic time to be able to make more people aware of the tools available to them so they can sell more tickets or register more attendees, whilst also saving time and creating a smooth process for the team organising as well as those going along."

Bethan was previously an associate director at Nelson Bostock, where she headed up the Facebook team for four years. She also took a lead role on the launch of EE last year and was a senior member of the press office teams for EE, T-Mobile and Orange over the 18 months since Nelson Bostock won the T-Mobile account in 2011.

Before that, she was at Lewis PR, having joined as a graduate trainee in 2003. While there, she worked on BT Retail as her main account.

NBC Universal has appointed Channel 4's Saskia Wirth to the newly-created role of comms and marketing director.

Saskia, who started last week, will oversee all external and internal comms, as well as marketing, for NBC International TV production, which includes production companies like Carnival Films – makers of Downton Abbey and Dracula, and Monkey Kingdom – makers of Made in Chelsea. She will also oversee all international format sales.

Saskia will work with the wider NBC Universal comms and marketing teams, as well as its two agencies, Milk Publicity and Freud Communications.

She was previously group publicity manager for factual entertainment, features, daytime, music and education at Channel 4 for nearly five years, and before that was head of press at ITV News.

Powerscourt has taken on telecoms equity research analyst Andy Parnis to work closely with Powerscourt's TMT team and will also boost the agency's shareholder and analyst engagement services.

Andy joins from UBS where he covered a range of European quoted companies and investor relationships.

Prior to UBS, Andy worked for Nomura, Lehman Brothers and Deloitte’s TMT team.

Andy can be reached at andy.parnis@powerscourt-group.com.

StockWell has moved to new offices at Wellington House, 125 Strand, overlooking the River Thames at Waterloo Bridge.

The move marks the final act of the agency's combination with Holloway & Associates bringing the enlarged StockWell team of 30 under one roof since the merger was announced in March.

Directions can be found here

StockWell's six Partners and five Directors now represent more than 40 clients in the UK, Europe & Russia, the United States and Asia bringing with them decades of combined boardroom experience in dealing with a range of communications disciplines.

M:Communications in Russia has rebranded as EM following a successful MBO expected to complete in August.

EM will be headquartered in London, while preserving its on-the-ground presence in Moscow and welcomes the return of emerging markets PR and IR consultant Stuart Lessor.

"While we are excited to be launching a new company, there is in fact nothing ‘new’ about our team," explained Tom Blackwell (pictured at the launch event), CEO of EM. "We are all Russia veterans and have worked together in one combination or another for several years.

“The letters in our new name reflect our longer-term strategy to expand our business into other emerging markets around the word. We believe emerging markets are the weakness of many international agencies, and an area of particular strength for the EM team.”

“Despite the new logo and new website, it will be business as usual for us. The team remains the same, and the clients remain the same.”

"Key to our success so far has been our ability to attract and retain the most talented and experienced professionals who understand Russia and Russian, allowing us to maintain the highest level of client service. Going forward, we will continue to seek out and hire the very best talent in the markets in which we operate.

"We would like to thank our fabulous clients for all of their support and commitment, without whom we would not have had a business to buy."

Kingdom of Dreams, India’s first live entertainment destination, has brought in Hills Balfour to handle its UK PR.

The agency has been briefed to promote Kingdom of Dreams to the UK market, and raise its profile amongst travel trade and press.

The team will showcase the destination's positioning as a 'must-visit' while touring India's Golden Triangle.

Activity will also include a series of sales calls and training sessions, and the team will also raise the destination’s profile at this year's World Travel Market event in November.

Kingdom of Dreams, which covers more than six acres, was launched in 2010 to promote Indian culture, cuisine, art and entertainment.

UK-based retail platform Venda has retained Diffusion to place the company at the heart of the debate on the future of retail.

The agency, which won the account following a competitive pitch, has been briefed to raise the profile of the company as a global leader in enabling brands to sell effectively across in-store, online and mobile channels.

Activity will take Venda out of the retail trade press and raise the profile of its executives as retail industry commentators in national business and broadcast media.

The campaign will also focus on raising the corporate profile of Venda as a world-beating British tech and software pioneer.

Finula Crowe, head of marketing EMEA at Venda, said: "We needed an agency with impeccable national media contacts, a deep understanding of the retail industry and a proven track record in thought-leadership and corporate profile raising campaigns.

"However, we also needed more than a traditional PR agency; we wanted a team that really understands modern content marketing and the importance of social media. Diffusion was a great fit."

"Diffusion impressed us with their 'creative content first' approach, with original campaigns that we could see resonating with clients and prospects across editorial and digital channels, with the potential to be brought to life through our events and sponsorship programme."

Daljit Bhurji, Diffusion global MD, said: "As a genuine British technology success story, Venda is a very significant addition to our business services client portfolio. Developments in retailing are changing the way we live our lives, from the role of our town centres and high streets to the potential impact of innovations like Google Glass.

"Diffusion is relishing the chance to showcase the industry expertise and vision of Venda in this debate and place it at the very forefront of the retail landscape."

APR Energy has appointed Capital MSL as its international financial and corporate communications advisor.

Listed on the London Stock Exchange, APR Energy specialises in the sale of electricity through the deployment and installation of scalable turnkey power solutions.

Richard Campbell, managing director of Capital MSL will lead the team.

“APR Energy has an impressive track record of growth and an exciting future ahead," explained Richard. "We are looking forward to partnering with the company, helping to communicate its compelling story to the financial community and broad range of stakeholders.”

Serving both utility and industrial segments, the company provides power generation solutions to customers and communities around the world, with an emphasis on Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and Asia.

Gong Communications has won the corporate communications brief for Invest in Africa following a three way pitch.

The contract is effective immediately with initial activity mainly focused in Ghana’s business capital, Accra.

“This is a great opportunity to work alongside Invest in Africa to identify and showcase a pool of local African businesses capable of operating to international best practice standards to encourage more international companies to source locally, contributing more fully to African national economies as they do so,” explained Gong’s MD, Narda Shirley.

"We have reached a key milestone in our development and need an agency that can roll its sleeves up and deliver both locally and internationally, working seamlessly with us in the UK, Ghana and beyond as we plan our roll-out into wider sub-Saharan Africa," added Will Pollen, Invest in Africa’s Programme Director. "Gong impressed us for their creativity in the pitch and reputation for consistent and effective delivery.”

Headland has been appointed to lead a £10m City fundraising drive by cancer charity Oracle Cancer Trust, to fund a new state of the art treatment centre.

Headland will kick-start the campaign by devising a digital media strategy for Oracle, which funds pioneering research for head and neck cancers, and will advise the charity on its inaugural City donor programme.

Oracle Cancer Trust, whose President is leading TV comedy producer and founder of Hat Trick Productions Jimmy Mulville and Vice-President is Nigella Lawson, aims to raise the profile of head and neck cancers which are four times more prevalent than testicular cancer and yet are massively under-funded.

Fiona Davis-Coleman will lead the Headland team.

“To date Oracle has, understandably, been focussed on its community, but now with the aim to raise £10 million by 2018 to establish a vital new centre of excellence for the treatment of this range of cancers, there is a need to launch a fund-raising programme which starts with awareness and reputation-building online,” explained Fiona.

“We have been impressed with the Headland team’s knowledge and experience of how to leverage exposure for our cause through the use of digital, alongside traditional, media and their creativity for developing our first City event," added Anthony Sykes, CEO of Oracle. "We are looking forward to utilising their guidance and expertise over the next few years.”

Manc Frank, the northern agency of Frank PR, has been brought in to handle the PR for Mexican-inspired burrito bar, Barburrito, as the brand expands nationwide.

Manc Frank has been briefed to support Barburrito's move into a national brand, including promoting its existing venues in Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, London and Nottingham, and introducing new regions and audiences to the dining experience.

Activity will include encouraging trial through media and blogger relations plus amplifying the brand as a go-to destination through news gen tactics and social content

Stephanie Wyatt, marketing coordinator at Barburrito, said: "Barburrito is much more than great tasting food, it's an experience and our mission is to be the most loved burrito brand in the UK.

"Restaurant reviews are naturally very important to our award-winning credentials but we wanted an agency full of imagination and ideas to really give us an additional edge and this is what Manc Frank provides."

Graeme Anthony, Manc Frank general manager, said: "Barburrito has grown organically to date which is testament to its founders' vision and passion. The brand's maverick nature matches our style of PR perfectly and we’re eager to cook up a storm and help take Barburrito to the next national level."

Barburrito is the brainchild of former management consultants Morgan Davies and Paul Kilpatrick, who worked together at Manchester restaurant Globe and were united in their love for great food and the shared desire to bring a Mexican-inspired experience to the UK. The first Barburrito opened in Manchester in 2005.

Tony Blair's former government relations chief, Anji Hunter, is joining Edelman as a senior advisor.

Anji, who joins in October, will work with Edelman's UK CEO, Ed Williams, and general manager, Alex Bigg, to provide senior counsel to clients across the business.

Her work will involve advising clients on corporate reputation building, crisis management and public affairs. She will also work with the agency to help promote senior women in the comms industry.

Ed said: "Anji is a force to be reckoned with. She brings great energy, flair and considerable charm to everything she puts her mind to. Her comms counsel is first rate, gleaned from unrivalled experience in some of the world’s biggest companies and alongside Tony Blair in government. I am really looking forward to working with her and believe she will add tremendous value to our clients."

Anji worked for the Royal Academy of Engineering as the director of The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering. Before that, she was group head of government and social affairs at Anglo American plc, with responsibility for overseeing relations with the communities and governments where the company operates.

For seven years, Anji was group director of comms at BP. She was responsible for advertising, group publications, internal communications and liaison with opinion formers, media and investors.

She worked for Prime Minister Tony Blair MP from 1987 to 2002, in opposition and government, becoming head of government relations in Downing St in 1997, where she was the key liaison with the Cabinet, Civil Service, the Labour Party, Opposition Leaders, other Governments, and key media, business, and NGO figures.

Anji said: "I am delighted to be joining Edelman, one of the leading companies in a highly competitive and expert field, as I know from experience. I believe in outreach, the big tent and behaving with integrity.

"After working in politics, industry and most recently in the charitable, academic and international engineering sphere, I look forward to bringing my skills and experience together and working with Ed and his team."

Bordeaux Index a leading fine wine merchant and trader founded by Gary Boom and Chaired by ICAP's CEO Michael Spencer, has appointed Yellow Jersey as its corporate relations adviser.

BI has offices in London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Los Angeles, as well as a rapidly growing international customer base and was responsible for the launch of LiveTrade in 2009, which is the world's first online trading platform for fine wine.

The platform, which has firm bid and offer prices available 24/7, won the Company "Innovator of the Year" award at the 2009 International Wine Challenge. BI was also shortlisted for the 2013 International Wine Challenge "Champagne & Sparkling Specialist" award.

“BI is a world renowned global brand run by leaders in industry," explained Dominic Barretto, Yellow Jersey’s managing director. "Our ability to service not only quoted companies seeking support around their listing, but also private brands seeking to become opinion formers in their sector and space makes Yellow Jersey a versatile agency for a needy and highly demanding business environment. We look forward to providing a high impact reputation management service to the BI brand as its management team”.

Consilium Strategic Communications has launched today, as a spin-off from M:Communications, to provide strategic financial and corporate communications advice to international companies across the healthcare industry.

The team will continue to work with public and private healthcare companies internationally across the pharma, biotech, medtech and healthcare services arenas.

Headquartered in the City of London, Consilium will be led by Mary-Jane Elliott together with fellow co-founder Amber Bielecka and Emma Thompson who will join the team in August to spearhead Asian operations from Singapore.

Its rostrum of specialist communications services encompasses financial communications, cross-border transactional support, reputation management and crisis communications, through to guidance on corporate and social responsibility strategies.

“The spin-out and launch of Consilium Strategic Communications allows us to intensify our focus on our clients with our dedicated sector approach and to provide unmatched capabilities across all levels of the healthcare sector on a truly international scale," explained Mary-Jane Elliott, managing partner of Consilium Strategic Communications. "I am proud to be launching Europe’s only healthcare focused financial PR and IR company and the team in London is delighted that Emma Thompson will spearhead our Asian operations, an increasingly important geography for our clients."

www.consilium-comms.com

Mary-Jane Elliott and Amber Bielecka are available on: Tel: +44(0)20 7920 2345 / +44 (0)20 7920 2352 Elliott@consilium-comms.com / Bielecka@consilium-comms.com.

IMG Arts & Entertainment Division has handed Midas Public Relations the PR account for London Bierfest, a major corporate hospitality event at Old Billingsgate Market on October 24 and 25.

Bierfest will bring the high spirits of the traditional Bavarian Oktoberfest to Old Billingsgate Market on October 24 and 25 with foot-stomping oompah bands, teams of Heidis and Helgas waiting at the tables, speciality foods and over 15,000 litres of premium German beer on tap.

“London businesses are increasingly looking for original, affordable and memorable ways of networking with clients and rewarding staff,” said Midas managing director Penny Clifton. “London Bierfest is the perfect escape from the office and an unmissable fixture in the corporate hospitality calendar.”

Midas’s portfolio also includes Latitude and Hay festivals, and the Cotswold-based BITE food festival.

Capella has been brought in to handle the launch of new mobile payments service Zapp.

The agency has been briefed to raise the profile of Zapp, which will allow customers to pay for goods and services using their smart phone, amongst the retail and financial sectors ahead of Zapp’s consumer launch in 2014. Customers will be able to pay by loading a mobile app and then scanning a barcode, or tapping a reader, with their phones.

The team will target national, broadcast and trade media, and will also run a profiling and thought leadership campaign.

Justin Basini, chief marketing officer at Zapp, a subsidiary of UK payments provider VocaLink, said: "Zapp is a disruptive innovation and we want to work with disruptive thinkers to share the message of how we’re transforming payments. Capella fit that description."

Gareth Thomas, Capella PR founder, said: "People have talked about mobile payment for years, but most solutions have lacked the credibility of Zapp, which is already backed by many of the major players in the industry. We will help Zapp secure even more widespread support."

Cadenzza, the new jewellery offer from the Swarovski Group, has brought in retail specialists Portas to handle its PR following a four-way pitch.

The agency has been briefed to work with the Cadenzza team to handle its initial launch at Westfield Stratford, and in subsequent stores in Bluewater, opening on August 15, and Westfield London, opening on August 22.

The team aims to build momentum around the launches and increase awareness to trend-conscious women, while promoting the brand's ethos 'Today I am'.

Elisabeth Stark, marketing VP at Cadenzza, said: "We felt that Portas brought an unrivalled insight into the Cadenzza customer and current retail market; understanding both what we wanted from the launch, and also what will attract our consumers.

"With the launch of three stores in the UK this autumn we can't wait to start working together and showing the beautiful collection that Cadenzza has to offer."

Caireen Wackett, MD at Portas, said: "Cadenzza really showcases that jewellery doesn't have to be just for special occasions, showing consumers how to have fun with jewellery, and how intrinsic it is to the latest looks and trends. It's brilliant to be able to introduce this brand to the UK, working with the wealth of talented designers the brand has at its finger tips, and truly seeing it shine."

Cadenzza will stock collections from more than 50 designers, from well-know designers including Jean Paul Gaultier and Roberto Cavalli, as well as brands well-known within the fashion set, such as Mawi London and Shorouk. The layout of the stores mirrors international fashion magazines.

The Body Shop has brought in Cake to handle its social media with a brief to raise awareness of the brand’s ethical proposition and products and drive online engagement.

The agency, which won the account following a four-way pitch, will develop and implement an online strategy to bring to life the brand's 'Beauty With Heart' online mantra, as well as driving engagement amongst existing and new Facebook fans.

The account will be led by Cake associate board director Helen Rainford, reporting to The Body Shop's social media manager Rowan Stanfield who said she was impressed by Cake's creative approach to digital.

"This, backed up by the team’s evident experience in delivering tangible results for clients through social media made it the obvious choice for us."

Helen said: "To work with a brand with such a strong heritage and sense of integrity as The Body Shop is a great prospect for the agency. Our approach will be to ensure we deliver a strategy which not only delivers success online, but also flies through all earned media channels."

The Gorkana Group is launching an award to recognise those who have made a difference to others in the industry.

The award is in memory of one of the industry’s brightest young stars, Suzy Ferguson, who died a year ago today aged just 31.

Suzy was an inspirational person, whose work impacted clients and fellow professionals. Suzy also worked tirelessly in the community outside her work, even after she was diagnosed with cancer. Her spirit and talent positively influenced every organisation she worked with.

To honour her memory, Suzy’s former employer, LEWIS PR, approached Gorkana with the idea of a unique industry award. Gorkana was chosen after the agency learned the story behind its name - an inspirational Gurkha sergeant who saved the life of the original Gorkana founder.

The Suzy Ferguson Spirit Award will officially launch in September and aims to find an inspirational person in the industry worthy of the award. Unlike other awards that only acknowledge professional achievements, it aims to recognise individuals of exceptional character, integrity and determination.

It is hoped that the award will become an annual tribute to the inspirational legacy Suzy leaves behind.

Jeremy Thompson, Gorkana Group CEO, said: "The spirit of inspiration and determination which characterized Suzy Ferguson is at the heart of our ethos, and bowel cancer is an issue which has very personal resonance for me. I wholeheartedly support anything that we can do to help promote awareness and diagnosis and further the good work of the charity in Suzy's memory."

Suzy's husband Alex Ferguson said: "Suzy did everything in her life with passion - be it in the workplace, at church, or home. She made everyone feel loved and welcome around her, and her favourite line, that she used repeatedly, was 'Bring It On!'

"She challenged her cancer, and she battled it, and although it eventually beat her, she never gave up without a fight. The biggest thing that Suzy did through everything was love and inspire other people, and I hope this award is given to the person who embodies these same qualities."

Bowel Cancer UK is the official charity for the award. The charity aims to save lives and improve the quality of life for all those affected by bowel cancer. The charity's work is essential as early diagnosis is a key challenge in survival. All funds resulting from the award will go towards funding the vital work the charity does.

More details about the award, the judging panel, criteria and how to enter will be released during the summer via Gorkana's news. You can also follow @suzyspiritaward for the latest news and updates.

For more immediate information, please contact: suzyspiritaward@gorkana.com.

As the UK gears up to mark one year since the start of the London 2012 Olympics, Gorkana catches up with Merrick Haydon, MD of Revolution Sports + Entertainment, on what it takes to be a sports PR.

What got you into sports PR?

I have always been passionate about sport so I wanted a way to use this within my career. During my business degree I found that sponsorship and marketing was an area I really enjoyed, which lead me into doing my dissertation on sponsors in horse racing. This helped me get my first placement in sponsorship and PR at the Vodafone Derby as a press officer, and I’ve never looked back since.

Is there a typical day?

No not at all! One day I could be heading off abroad to support a client sponsoring a golf event and the next I could be in the office going through annual budget reports.

You travel constantly, even once flying from London to Rio for a 45-minute meeting – is that the nature of all sports PR roles?

It very much depends on the brands you work with I think. We have a very international client base at Revolution so lots of what goes on involves us going around the world in order to attend meetings, or to support events which our clients are staging.

Is sports PR just about brokering sponsorship deals and sponsorship activation?

That is a large part of what goes on, but it’s not the only thing. Our main aim is to make sure the brands we work with bring its sponsorship to life and we do this through various methods, but increasingly it is about engagement; whether that be with fans, the media or VIPs. Social media and digital are now the glue that bind all these engagement activities.

How hard is it to match the right brand with the right sports sponsorship?

It is difficult but in many ways that isn’t a bad thing. The key thing is to consider a brand’s target market and its aims and objectives of the sponsorship – once you have these it’s a case of finding the right category or creating a new bespoke sponsorship which will tick all the boxes.

Is there a particular sport that lends itself most to PR?

Obviously the most popular and media worthy the sport, the easier it is to PR. That said, almost every sport is backed in some way by sponsorship and has a fan base, so therefore has the capability to be involved with PR. As a result I wouldn’t say there is one particular sport that is best suited to PR.

On the whole, what do sports journalists think of sports PRs?

If we are able to offer them access to a leading athlete then we can be the best of friends!! But aside from this we tend to both have a shared passion for sport, giving us a common ground and meaning we do get on well.

What advice would you give to someone wanting to get into sports PR?

Be passionate and keep writing things such as blogs, which will show companies that you are enthusiastic about sport. It is also important to have some work experience in the sporting sector and to know what is going on in the sporting world day-to-day, as well as being hot on your social media.

What skills are essential for a sports PR?

Enthusiasm, hard work and having a passion for sport are all very important. I also think it’s crucial that you are not scared to get involved in things which may be outside your comfort zone.

What do you look for in new recruits?

Someone who is really keen and passionate on sports at all levels, and doesn’t shy away from tasks. Previous work experience is a huge bonus.

You’ve said you always ask job interviewees what sports PR campaign has caught their eye. What has caught yours recently?

One campaign which really caught my eye was Bubba Watson and Oakley, and creating a hovercraft golf buggy. It was a great stunt, which gained no end of media coverage, and was the talk of the office all week. The YouTube video now has more than eight million hits, which further shows the popularity of the activity.

Any PR sporting nightmares you can tell us about?

I was at a polo match in France where our client was the title sponsor. Minutes before the match began one of the teams came on to the field wearing a kit displaying a main competitors brand – considering the match was being televised around the world this was a big no no. However after a quick dash to the supermarket for some white tape to cover up the logos, the emergency was averted!

And finally, what is your favourite sport?

Rugby union.