"They are creative and sensitive to our business needs, concerned with checking back that their suggestions fulfilled our goals. Their integrity and empathy, as well as their creative skills, are at all times impeccable. I cannot fault the service."

 

 

 

 

 

14 December 2011

 

 

The roundest of robins

 

2011 has been a marvellous year for Twelve Thirty Eight, with unprecedented levels of professional and personal fulfilment...

 

Find us on twitter @suburbman

 

 

Dear all,

 

We hope this letter finds you well. 2011 has been a marvellous year for Twelve Thirty Eight, with unprecedented levels of professional and personal fulfilment. At the start of the year we challenged each other to strive for even greater heights - to each find our own unique “Everest” and to scale it. We are proud to say that many peaks were climbed this past year. Our career crampons were put to good use.

 

For Hamish Thompson, our creative director, the challenge was to find the elusive Higgs Boson particle, an endeavour usually only attempted by particle physicists with access to billions of pounds of equipment. Lacking such resources, Hamish used only an old Scalextric in his garage and although his search for the particle was not successful, he did come to understand the nature of boredom, and there can be no greater prize than that.

 

In August campaigns director Rachel Roe finally achieved her lifelong dream of swimming with dolphins when, on holiday in Florida, she shared a pool with Ryan Baker and Phillip Merling, two defensive linesmen from the Miami Dolphins. It was a thrilling experience for Rachel, who said: “Looking into their eyes was incredible. It was almost as though they had human levels of intelligence.”

 

Associate directors Nicola Carslaw and Tracey Harrison have continued to tour the midlands and the south-east with their two-woman version of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. Although the critical reviews have been mixed, with the Ipswich Evening Star calling it “a slap in the face to theatre”, it was loved by the public, with many audiences even staying after the interval.

 

Digital media specialist James Horne has always enjoyed pushing the envelope, but in March 2011 he outdid himself, pushing a huge 50 kilo envelope up the length of Parliament Hill to raise awareness of the dying art of penmanship. It was an unmitigated triumph, with nearly six people approaching him to ask him what he was doing.

 

For Company Secretary Penelope Overton, 2011 was all about April’s Royal Wedding. Penelope spent over a week camped outside Buckingham Palace with her family, enjoying a sense of camaraderie and community not seen in London since The Blitz. And although she slept through the wedding itself, she did manage to collect and keep a small amount of gravel kicked up by the Duke of Cambridge’s car.

 

Our resident culture vulture and official market research consultant Clare Wade spent much of the year working on her self-penned musical “King and I” about Tottenham Hotspur and England defender Ledley King, tracing his emergence from the Spurs youth team to his time as club captain and his struggles with chronic knee injuries. Although the musical isn’t yet finished, everyone in the office who has heard the songs can confirm that they are very catchy.

 

Associate Sue Emmett is well-known for her love of animals, and 2011 saw her opening the Sue Emmett Home For Dogs That Aren’t Suffering From Any Specific Illness But Do Look Lonely. She commented that “whilst a dog is a man’s best friend, a friend in need is a friend indeed, and a fair weather friend is no-one’s favourite dog”. No one is quite sure what this means, but seeing Sue striding into the Twelve Thirty Eight offices surrounded by 20-30 dogs certainly lifts all of our spirits.

 

Finally, some words for 2012. Even having factored in the Mayan prophecy that the world will come to an end next year, we think 2012 will hold a lot of surprises for everyone. Will the London Olympics finally solve the riddle of how many people can fit into a single Central Line train? Will Public Relations finally be officially accepted as the fourth emergency service? Time will tell. Time will tell.

 

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Hamish, Rachel, James, Tracey, Penelope, Clare, Nicola and Sue

www.1238kmh.com

 

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Launching Mowtown PR

Hamish Thompson - 27 May 2011

 

We’re launching a new division today that we’re calling Mowtown PR.  Mowtown will focus on high-impact special projects for consumer brands that wish to make a direct appeal to the adult population of suburbia.
 
Mowtown will offer big ideas, world class media relations skills and its expert knowledge of the rapidly-growing enclaves of social media that are populated by the “twittering classes”.

 

Learn more at www.1238kmh.com/mowtown

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Hi-Cone appoints Twelve Thirty Eight

Tracey Harrison - 19 April 2011

 

Hi-Cone, the international leader in multi-packaging for beverage, food and consumer goods, has handed Twelve Thirty Eight a full communications brief, to help build its profile in the UK.

 

The commercially-driven PR programme will focus on a drive to increase Hi-Cone’s client base and generate sales, both growing the core market and bringing new focus to the soft drinks and bottled water sectors.

 

Twelve Thirty Eight will handle consumer and B2B PR, and has also been tasked with refreshing Hi-Cone’s social media strategy.

 

The team will be headed by Jeremy Duncan, Twelve Thirty Eight’s director of strategy and services, and associate director Tracey Harrison. They will report to Ton Hoppenbrouwers, Hi-Cone’s Business Development Director, Europe.

 

Jeremy Duncan said: “We are very excited to be working with Hi-Cone to help develop their UK business. Hi-Cone is unique, a little known brand with a ubiquitous product that has a very important role to play in reducing packaging usage.”

 

Hi-Cone provides a range of photodegradable plastic-based multi-package systems for global industries, including day to day multipacks as well as promotional packs for cans and bottles. It focuses on quality, value and innovation and is committed to environmental responsibility. Hi-Cone’s products are convenient for consumers, enable brands to deliver on-pack messages and promotions and bring efficiency and flexibility to the supply chain for both the brand-owner as well as the grocery multiple.

 

- Ends -

 

Twelve Thirty Eight is a multi-award winning transmedia PR and corporate reputation consultancy.  Clients include national and international retailers, leading food and drink brands, consumer and business to business technology brands and professional services businesses.  For more information visit www.1238kmh.com

 

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Our campaign featured in PR Week

PR Week - 18 February 2011

 

Whilst the news hook that we devised was a little whimsical, we did succeed in carrying the message that more than 90% of Milton Keynes' residents love living there - which is precisely the message that Destination Milton Keynes wanted to get across to potential residents and potential businesses. The story was covered extensively in the national press and on TV.

 

You can read the full article in PR Week, here

 

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Announcing our first new client of 2011!

Jeremy Duncan - 10 January 2011

 

As of today, Twelve Thirty Eight are working with an upcoming leader in the mobile applications sector. They’ve already taken Europe by storm and we shall be supporting them across a range of activities for their UK launch.

 

Whilst we cannot reveal too much at this time, the application utilises crowd-sourced data in an original and highly effective way. Stay tuned...

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Twelve Thirty Eight announces key appointments

Hamish Thompson - 16 November 2010

 

Twelve Thirty Eight announces the following appointments today:

 

Jeremy Duncan is appointed director of strategy and services.  Jeremy will be responsible for strategy, planning, coordination of integrated campaigns and service delivery.  He joins from strategic brand consultancy, Radius, where he was managing director. Jeremy has been a brand advisor to many household names in the UK, including Bhs, Cadbury, Carphone Warehouse, Co-operative Group, Harvey Nichols, John Lewis Partnership, Le Creuset, Reckitt Benckiser, RSPB, SAB Miller, Superdrug, UniChem, Visit London and YO! Sushi.

 

 

Clare Wade joins as research associate.  Clare will be responsible for all consumer insights that underpin Twelve Thirty Eight’s campaigning and corporate responsibility work for clients as well as pre-launch planning for new product announcements. Clare’s background includes roles as an account planner at Bartle Bogle Hegarty, a market research executive at HPI and Planning Director at Hall Advertising in Edinburgh.  Clare will continue to run her consultancy Q-Mindspace in parallel with her work with Twelve Thirty Eight.

 

Hamish Thompson, managing director, said: “Twelve Thirty Eight is experiencing strong growth and I’m delighted to announce Jeremy and Clare’s appointments.  Both have a wealth of experience that will be key to our mission of catalysing positive conversations about our clients online, on air, on the page and on the move.”

 

- Ends -

 

About Twelve Thirty Eight

Twelve Thirty Eight is an award-winning PR and strategic communications consultancy serving a national and international client base of leading retail, FMCG and technology brands.  The consultancy works with social and traditional media to catalyse positive conversations about its clients’ brands online, on air, on the page and on the move.  For more information, visit www.1238kmh.com.

 

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Twelve Thirty Eight move to larger offices in central St.Albans

James Horne - 02 November 2010

 

We’re pleased to announce that from November 1st 2010, we will be operating from new offices right in the heart of St.Albans.

 

We’re 20 minutes from St Pancras and Luton Airport and just off the M1 and M25.  At our new site we have spacious meeting room facilities, a broadcast media training suite, social media monitoring services and much more.

 

 

Our new address:

6 St.Peters Street, St.Albans,
Hertfordshire, AL3 3LF, UK

All other contact information, telephone numbers
and email addresses will remain the same.

 

We now offer a wider range of services to clients, including:
• Accredited qualitative and quantitative research capabilities
• Broadcast navigation services
• Communications audits, using our proprietary 360 degree feedback method, Market Voice
• Full product placement services

 

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Wicked Uncle appoints Twelve Thirty Eight to promote its unique gift services

James Horne - 15 July 2010

 

We’re delighted to announce that we’re working with irreverent online retailer, Wicked Uncle.  We will promote the unique characteristics of their service and the diverse range of toys that they offer.

 

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New Client: International consultancy firm FDKG

Hamish Thompson - 12 July 2010

 

We have been appointed by FDKG, an internal luxury goods consultancy, to promote their expertise and to highlight their range of services for British and Chinese businesses seeking to establish a cross-border presence.

 

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It's Pomegreat for Twelve Thirty Eight

Tracey Harrison - 1 July 2010

 

Twelve Thirty Eight is delighted to announce that it has been awarded the PR brief by the UK’s leading pomegranate juice brand, Pomegreat.

 

The team, headed by managing director Hamish Thompson and associate Tracey Harrison, will drive a campaign to reinforce Pomegreat’s market position and to highlight the health benefits of pomegranate juice.

 

They will report to Pomegreat’s managing director, Adam Pritchard.

 

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Zenex appoints Twelve Thirty Eight to champion energy efficiency

Nicola Carslaw - 21 June 2010

 

Energy conservation specialists, Zenex Technologies, have asked us to promote their latest product, a gas saving device for condensing boilers, which will have a huge impact on home heating bills.

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Twelve Thirty Eight goes green for Twig Group

Nicola Carslaw - 6 May 2010

 

The Twig Group are a Kent based landscaping company who make conservation a key priority.  We will be working with them on a wide range of projects linked to their innovative approach to landscaping and conservation.

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Ethical claims service appoints Twelve Thirty Eight

Hamish Thompson - 12 April 2010


Ethical personal injury claims service itsmyclaim.com has appointed Twelve Thirty Eight to promote its service to businesses, insurers and consumers. Twelve Thirty Eight will promote the cost and time benefits of the service and expose the outrageous costs associated with Ambulance Chasing practices in the UK.

 

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Twelve Thirty Eight promotes family friendly technology

Hamish Thompson - 5 March 2010


ClearPlay have selected Twelve Thirty Eight to support the launch of their ingenious content filtering technology in the UK.

 

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Twelve Thirty Eight lands international PR and public affairs brief

PR Week - 29 January 2010

 

Twelve Thirty Eight has landed an international PR and public affairs brief with Lagan Technologies, the largest indigenous software company in Northern Ireland. Twelve Thirty Eight is headed by MD Hamish Thompson, a former director of group media relations at DSG International.

 

Click here to see the original article:

http://prweek.co.uk/uk/news/search/979988/Public-Affairs-Week-Lobbying/

 

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Winners, Outstanding Small PR

Consultancy of the Year Award

for the 2nd year in a row

Hamish Thompson - 1 December 2009


Great news. At an industry dinner on Friday night we received the Outstanding Small PR Consultancy of the Year Award for the second year in a row. It's a great honour and we've taken the opportunity to update the front page of our website with a slideshow of some of the campaigns that we're proudest of. 

It has been a difficult year for British business and we're hopeful that the new year will be better for all of us. As businesses look at their objectives for the year ahead, I'm reminded of an equation that I learned from a wise former colleague: "Perception minus reality equals value." The case for investing in building the perceptions of a brand was never more succinctly expressed.

 

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St. Albans cathedral shows off its buns

PR Week - 29 May 2009

 

Campaign: Renaming the Hot Cross Bun
Client: St Albans Cathedral
PR team: Twelve Thirty Eight
Timescale: March 2009
Budget: Pro bono

 

Every year Twelve Thirty Eight provides ten days of free senior consultancy support to a worthy cause. This year it chose St Albans Cathedral, a cultural landmark.

 

OBJECTIVES

- To raise the profile of the cathedral among potential tourists

- To identify a commercial opportunity that could raise money for the cathedral

- To support the cathedral's key messages.

 

STRATEGY AND PLAN

The PR team discovered the cathedral was the source of the modern hot cross bun. The original Alban Bun was baked and offered to the poor by Father Thomas Rockliffe, a monk, in 1361. The team advised the cathedral to run a campaign to reclaim and rename the hot cross bun and a partnership with Sainsbury's was negotiated to bake the buns for the cathedral, which would keep the proceeds.

 

MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION

The announcement that the hot cross bun was to be renamed the Alban Bun was covered by the Daily Mail, The Daily Telegraph, BBC radio stations, ITV, London Tonight, in regional press and online.

 

RESULTS

The buns baked at the cathedral sold out within hours. The cathedral also saw a flood of visitors and will meet Sainsbury's to negotiate an agreement on national sales of the bun in 2010.

 

Click here to see the original article:

http://prweek.co.uk/uk/news/search/908967/Campaign-Voluntary-sector---St-Albans-Cathedral-shows-off-its-buns/

 

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Twelve Thirty Eight win Outstanding Small Consultancy award

PR Week - 26 November 2008

 

CIPR PRide Awards: Thames & Chiltern


Twelve Thirty Eight

Founded by Hamish Thompson (who ‘killed the VCR’ at Dixons), Twelve Thirty Eight’s successes have grabbed headlines, including its RoboShop for PC World.

 

Click here to see the original article:

http://prweek.co.uk/uk/news/search/865450/CIPR-PRide-Awards-Thames---Chiltern/

 

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Twelve Thirty Eight is formed

PR Week - 30 May 2007

 

DSG International, owner of the Currys, PC World and Dixons brands, is revamping its in-house PR as the director of media relations departs.

DSG shakeup as media guru Thompson leaves

Hamish Thompson will leave at the end of June to set up his own agency called Twelve Thirty Eight.

 

Thompson described his agency as a ‘reputation and comms consultancy’. He will be collaborating with Nick Clack, former BBC business and economics senior producer who now runs his own media consultancy company ClackMedia.com, and Tracey Harrison, former consumer correspondent at the Daily Mirror.

 

Thompson has been at DSG for seven years, starting out as head of press and PR (PRWeek, 19 May 2000). He joined from technology investment bank Broadview International, where he was European comms manager.

 

At DSG, Thompson gained some notoriety for positives stories involving the death of old technology such as floppy disks, bulky TVs and VCRs (PRWeek, 2 December 2006).

 

‘My core skills are in media relations and initially we’ll be focused on clients in the retail, technology and professional sectors,’ said Thompson.

 

DSG confirmed it would be one of Twelve Thirty Eight’s first clients, offering a corporate brief.

 

Click here to see the original article:

http://prweek.co.uk/uk/news/search/660946/DSG-shakeup-media-guru-Thompson-leaves/

 

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