Day in the Life: Georgina Wald
Many people are attracted to running a pub because of one crucial factor: variety.
Never knowing who is going to walk through your door or what challenge the day will throw up is what some licensees thrive on. But there are plenty of other jobs within this great industry offering that vital 'V' factor.
One of these is managing a pub company's public relations department.
With the trade and alcohol currently in the full glare of the media spotlight, it's a lively time for PRs.
Having to defend the Great British pub while promoting the merits of beer (as part of a healthy diet) is all in a day's work.
And one person helping man the barricades is Fuller's high-profile PR manager Georgina Wald, or George as she is affectionately known to many.
I¹m spending a day with George to get a feel for what it's like to be a pubco PR.
And from the off, it's apparent it's going to be a busy day.
First up is the job of dealing with an Outlook inbox 57 emails in total.
"That's about average," says George. One is a breakdown of press cuttings detailing the media coverage received by Fuller¹s recently. Fortunately, today, it¹s all positive.
St George¹s Day has made for some really upbeat feedback including a story in the Daily Star about Miss Universe helping launch a new pie that contains London Pride. Well, they all count.
George admits, however: "When it comes to St George's Day it helps us being in London." London Pride also gets a mention in popular men's magazine Loaded, showing exposure for the brand can come in all shapes and sizes.
Next up it's a quick trip to see one of the brewery's technical services people, Emma Watts, to discuss the finer points of a promotional push at a trade lunch. Fuller's is sponsoring the event and George wants to make sure the brewer makes the most of the opportunity.
The big question is whether the bottles of ESB, which will be on tables, should be in an ice bucket.
"Do you think they should just be chilled instead?" inquires George. Emma agrees that should be sufficient. At the end of the meeting it¹s decided there will be 1,000 bottles of ESB and 600 pints of London Pride at the event.
In touch with The Publican
It¹s nearly lunchtime, but before that, George puts in a quick call to The Publican's very own features writer Nick Yates. It's about a feature on accommodation Nick is writing and George is checking he has all the material he needs.
Anyway, it's time to sample some of Fuller¹s finest ales, so we take a trip to one of the two pubs close to the brewery, the George and Devonshire.
Here we meet Colleen McDonnell, a reporter from local newspaper, the Brentford Chiswick and Isleworth Times.
George explains that it's vital Fuller's maintains good relations with the local press. "A lot of people we employ at the brewery are locals and we like to attract people from the area. So it helps to maintain a profile so people know we're here," she says.
Colleen is an enthusiastic real ale drinker, which helps George's cause.
After that, we hit the road. George is responsible for organising the logistics of the company's results presentation. And she's decided she wants to use the Turks Head in Twickenham to do a photo-shoot with chief executive Michael Turner and James Douglas, finance director.
It's clear Fuller's PR chief likes getting out in the field and takes on the role of an area manager in this scenario.
The pub's licensee Paul Lenson runs a tight ship, pointing out to me that they took £21,000 during the last big rugby match.
But George is keen to stress that everything must be perfect for the photo-shoot. This includes re-arranging the back-bar and changing a pump handle, which has been scratched by a staff member's ring. After a quick look around the Turks Head's impressive beer garden we jump in the car and head back to the office.
George has a couple more emails to take care of, but before long we're out the door again heading for the Real Food Festival at Earl¹s Court.
Market research
She wants to do some "market research" to see whether it would be worthwhile for Fuller's to exhibit at the show in future.
This is definitely a fun part of the job we whirl around tasting a plethora of organic foods and drinks.
But George is soon chatting to various exhibitors, including the friendly chaps from Aspall about their experiences of the show. Overall George seems unconvinced that exhibiting at the show would be beneficial, although it¹s a discussion to be had.
Finally our day is done. Seeing things from what for many reporters is the "dark side" has certainly been an invigorating experience.
The only thing it lacked was a phone call from a pesky journalist.
The lazy sods were probably all down the pub!
George's CV
Age: 37
Job title: PR manager, Fuller, Smith & Turner
- 2002-2008 Public relations manager, Fuller Smith & Turner
- 1999-2002 Corporate Communications Manager, BII
- 1995-1999 Reporter/Brands Editor/Diary Editor/Editor Town & City, The Publican
- 1992-1995 Public Relations Executive, The Business Works PR Consultancy
- 1992 Graduated with Honours degree in Business Studies from Middlesex University
