What does a PR consultancy do?
A PR consultancy manages how your business is seen in the media: it finds the stories worth telling, builds relationships with the journalists who cover your world, handles their questions, and protects your reputation when things get difficult. Our press office service does all of that for premium Cotswold businesses, with a senior person at the helm and nothing sent out that you have not approved.
In practice that means someone whose job is to know which editor is planning the spring food pages, which travel writer is heading west next month, and which national desk is running a story your head chef could add something to. It also means someone who picks up the phone when a journalist calls with a question you were not expecting.
Our digital PR service is built around campaigns designed to earn links and search visibility. This is the everyday media relations work underneath it: the steady, reliable press office that keeps a good business in the right conversations all year round.
What an always-on press office looks like
A good press office is mostly invisible. Journalists get what they need quickly, stories appear in the right places, and you spend very little time thinking about it. Behind that, the work runs on a simple rhythm.
- Every day, we read the news agenda for your sector and your area, watch for journalist requests and deal with incoming enquiries.
- Every week, we pitch stories and comment to named journalists, and tell you what came back.
- Every month, you get a plain-English report: what we pitched, what ran, what did not and what we are changing.
- Every quarter, we sit down with you to plan the next season’s stories, from openings and new menus to anniversaries, restorations and appointments.
We also keep your press materials in order: an up-to-date fact sheet, approved biographies, a library of high-resolution images and a clear list of who can speak on what. When a features editor asks for a photograph of the walled garden by four o’clock, you want it sent by three.
Media relations: why it still comes down to people
For all the talk of algorithms, journalists still depend on PR. Cision’s 2026 survey of almost 1,900 journalists found that 66% rely on PR-provided content for story ideas, more than any other source. The same research found that 72% say fewer than a quarter of the pitches they receive are relevant.
That gap is the whole job. Muck Rack’s 2026 State of Journalism report found that 88% of journalists immediately disregard pitches that miss their beat, while 86% say at least some of their stories start with a PR pitch. Journalists want to hear from people who understand what they write about. They have little patience for anyone who does not.
So our media relations is personal and targeted. We pitch named journalists, one at a time, with a story shaped for their section. We know the difference between a travel desk and a features desk, between a weekly local paper and a monthly glossy that plans its issues months ahead, and between an editor who wants an exclusive and a reporter who needs a quote by lunchtime. We treat journalists’ time with respect, because that is how a press office earns the right to be heard.
Launches and openings
Openings are where press office work pays for itself, and where it is easiest to get wrong. A new restaurant, a reopened coaching inn, a spa, a shop or a new collection all compete for the same limited space, and editors are wary of anything that reads like an advert.
We plan launches backwards from the date that matters:
- Three to six months out, we agree the story. Not “we are opening”, but what makes this opening worth writing about: the chef’s route here, the restoration, the producers, the design decisions, the gap in the market.
- Long-lead titles hear first. Monthly magazines and weekend supplements plan well ahead, so they are briefed early, often under embargo, with an exclusive offered where it helps.
- Previews and press visits are timed carefully, so journalists see the place at its best, with the kitchen and team ready. Where we host a journalist, what they write is always their decision.
- Launch week brings in the news desks, regional press and broadcast, with imagery, facts and spokespeople ready.
- After launch, we keep the story going with first reviews, seasonal menus, milestones and the people behind the place.
The Cotswolds gives launches a natural calendar. Spring openings catch the travel pages as readers plan their summers. Autumn brings harvest, game and the start of the racing season at Cheltenham. Christmas gift guides are often compiled in the summer. We build your year around the moments editors already follow, so your news arrives when they are looking for it.
Press releases and reactive comment
Press releases still have a place, but not quite the one many businesses expect. We write them for a named journalist or desk, lead with the news in the first line, and include the facts, quotes and images an editor needs to publish without chasing. We do not rely on mass distribution, because a release sent to thousands of inboxes is the definition of a pitch that misses its beat. If you want to see how we approach them, read our guide to writing a press release.
Reactive comment is often more valuable. When a story breaks that your people can speak to, a fast, sharp comment can put your expert into a national piece within hours. Think of a sommelier on an English wine harvest story, a country estate agent on a shift in the prime property market, or a hotelier on the pressures of tourism in a busy village. We watch the agenda daily, draft comment for your approval and get it to the journalist while the story is still being written.
Reactive work only succeeds if your spokespeople can talk well at short notice, which is why many businesses pair a press office with media training.
How we run your press office
- One senior lead. The person you meet in the first call runs your press office and speaks to journalists on your behalf. There is no handover to a junior.
- Clear sign-off rules. We agree who approves what, and how fast, so we can keep pace with the news without putting words in your mouth.
- A named media list. Local, regional, national and specialist titles chosen because your customers read them, not because the list looks long.
- Honest reporting. Coverage, audience and what it did for the business, including enquiries and bookings wherever your systems let us track them.
- Issues on our radar. We flag anything that could become a problem early, from a neighbour’s complaint to a critical review gathering pace, and help you deal with it before a journalist does.
Is a press office right for your business?
A retained press office suits businesses with a steady flow of news and people worth hearing from: hotels, restaurants, estates, schools, property firms, interiors studios, wellness retreats and lifestyle brands. It is less suited to a business with one announcement a year. In that case a single launch project is better value, and we will tell you so.
It is also not the cheapest way to get your name about, because the work is senior and personal. If your budget is modest, a good freelance PR consultant may be the better fit for now. If you want a press office that journalists find useful and that protects a premium reputation, see how our pricing works or book a discovery call and we will show you where we would start.