Hollie Thompson

Brand Manager for Diva Pro Styling

Managing the marketing function for HB Collective, a hair and beauty distributor home to Great Lengths UK and Ireland. Creation and implementation of the marketing strategy and activity calendar to align with the business’ key objectives for the year with a combination of trade and consumer marketing activity. Including 3 key promotional areas for the year with organic and paid marketing in collaboration with the education and sales departments. Management of the marketing budget across trade and consumer. Event organisation and delivery including Great Lengths UK/IRE annual award ceremony, customer experience days, trade shows and press events. Focusing on a digital marketing improvements aiming to add value along the customer journey including a new social media strategy with stronger more engaging lifestyle content and working with brand aligning influencers and digital creators to ensure that the key target client is represented. Management of customer loyalty programme and customer communications through email and WhatsApp to drive customer retention and strengthen the brand connection. Closely working with the education and sales teams to align goals and maximise ROI.

Great Lengths are a global market leader within the hair extensions market and have defining excellence in the sector for 30 years. Focusing and continuously improving a sustainable business model has allowed Great Lengths to achieve B Corporation status and remain the only hair extension company in the world with this recognition. My role at Great Lengths/HB Collective is to educate salon owners and hair stylists on the benefits offering our products and services to their clients. I manage the incoming lead process and also onboarding of new accounts including business support including advice on pricing strategy and digital marketing to maximise revenue through existing and new clientele. Within my role, I also support the marketing function including event organisation (such as our annual award ceremony and education training courses), new product launch planning (such as our new Natural Cut tapes), email marketing, community social media management, management of our influencer marketing program and coordination with external marketing agencies.

Discover Economics is a national campaign to promote diversity among economic students. As a 'Student Champion', I visited local schools delivering economic workshops tailored to GCSE and A-level students with the aim of changing students' perceptions of economics and economists.

Following my return from my year abroad in Paris, I am happy to now be working as a year abroad student ambassador for the Newcastle University Business School. I will be advising and discussing with students who are currently considering adding the year abroad programme to their degree.

Psychology- A* Business studies- A* Economics- A