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Lodging & hospitality public relations specialist, Abode Worldwide, has appointed experienced agency leader and former Fleet Street journalist Neil Millard as Managing Director.

Millard joins the agency from Rhizome Media, where he spent nearly six years working across industries with a particular focus on property. Before that, he was a news journalist for some of the UK’s biggest titles, from the Evening Standard and MailOnline to the Sunday Mirror and The Sun.

His property experience — covering student accommodation, residential sales & development, offsite construction, fractional ownership, property investment, development finance, and mortgage lending — will dovetail with Abode’s six key lodging, living and hospitality pillars as the agency targets rapid growth over the next three years. Its focus will continue to be on technology solutions and enterprise level operators across short term rental, hotels, multifamily/Build to Rent (BTR), student lodging, coliving, and senior living.

Abode Worldwide was founded in 2017 by Jessica Gillingham and currently works with brands across North America and Europe. The company’s mission is to supercharge the authority and credibility of global tech pioneers and their customers as they transform the way we work, rest, and play. The team – which is hiring for new roles –does this by combining deep industry knowledge and extensive media and influencer relationships with continual fresh insight.

In the last year, for example, Abode Worldwide secured over 100 speaking opportunities for clients across podcasts, webinars, and conferences, in addition to hundreds more pieces of profile-raising proactive media coverage and thought leadership. To date, the agency has partnered with some of the biggest companies in the world of lodging, including ALTIDO, Bidroom, Breezeway, Boostly, Buoy, Guesty, Hostaway, Jetstream Hospitality Solutions, Key Data, Operto, PointCentral, Rentals United, Reside Worldwide, Revyoos, Safely, Uplisting, Xplorie and 3Sixty.

Jessica Gillingham, CEO & Founder of Abode Worldwide, said: “We’ve got big ambitions to be the premier global public relations specialist in the lodging, living and hospitality space, and Neil has been appointed to help us get there. He has a wealth of media know-how, fantastic leadership experience, and is a tremendous asset across the business and for our clients.

“He couldn’t join at a more important time, with the merging of the lodging, hospitality, hotel, short-term rental, and real estate sectors really picking up pace and we are excited to be at the forefront of this transformation for the technology solutions, operators, investors and their customers.”

Neil Millard, Managing Director of Abode Worldwide, commented: “The way we live is going to change dramatically over the next 20 years, and Abode Worldwide sits at an intersection where all these worlds collide. Whether it’s short-term rental technology, student accommodation, multifamily/Built To Rent, co-living or senior living — every one of these areas will see accelerating growth.

“This shift is happening globally, so it’s a magnificent opportunity for me to join an agency that looks beyond the horizon and already has more US than European clients. I’m really excited to join such a talented team. Jessica has massive ambitions for the company, and we’ll be winning business worldwide. A key immediate focus for me will driving our expansion and maintaining a laser focus on delivery for clients.”

For more information on Abode Worldwide, please visit abodeworldwide.com.

The award-winning agency delivers expert public relations and content to tech companies in the lodging sectors

October 5, 2022, U.K. – The team behind the specialist public relations and content agency, Abode PR, has announced a new name – Abode Worldwide – and revealed a complete rebranding to reflect its expanding global reach and growing client base across the lodging and hospitality technology sectors. 

Abode Worldwide was founded in 2017 and initially served the innovative short-term rental technology sector. Its scope broadened during a phenomenal growth period (the agency achieved a record revenue increase of 400% in 2021 with a fivefold increase in headcount) to working with brands across North America and Europe that sit at the intersection between hospitality and property including hotels, multifamily and the ‘living’ property sectors.

Abode Worldwide’s mission is to supercharge the authority and credibility of global tech pioneers transforming the way we work, rest, and play. The team does this by combining their deep industry understanding and extensive set of media and influencer relationships with continual fresh insight. In the last year, for example, the team secured nearly 200 speaking opportunities for their public relations clients, across podcasts, webinars and conferences as well as developing thought leadership opportunites for clients and managing news schedules. To date, the agency has partnered with some of the biggest tech companies in the industry, including ALTIDO, Bidroom, Breezeway, Guesty, Hostaway, Jetstream Hospitality Solutions, Operto, PointCentral, Rentals United, Reside 3Sixty, Revyoos, Safely, Uplisting and Xplorie. 

Leading the agency is CEO & Founder, Jessica Gillingham, a powerhouse in the industry and a regular contributor to industry media and speaker at events. 

She commented: “It’s an incredibly exciting time to be in the lodging and hospitality sectors with a greater merging of hotel, short-term rental, and real estate. In addition to our core sectors of hospitality, there are dynamic developments happening right now in all ‘living’ property verticals, such as student housing, multifamily, and coliving – particularly when embracing technology. 

“We see Abode Worldwide’s role as helping fuel that change by working closely with the companies behind the transformation to raise their profiles and communicate their value. As part of that journey, we will also be expanding our client and talent base outside of North America and Europe, supported by remote-first working culture. We wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to all our clients who have been part of the Abode Worldwide journey so far.”

For more information on Abode Worldwide, please visit abodeworldwide.com. 

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Abode PR, the Bath-based, award-winning global B2B technology public relations and content agency, is celebrating its 5th birthday and a record 400% growth in revenue during 2021.

The agency was masterminded by Founder and Managing Director, Jessica Gillingham, a Bath native and former director of Visit Bath. It originally set out to help raise the profile of transformative technology solutions operating within the travel accommodation industry through specialist public relations.

Under the strong leadership and vision of Gillingham, the scope of Abode PR’s work branched from PR into Content Marketing. The team now comprises a team of 10 all based in the South West, with a hub in the centre of Bath.

In the last eighteen months alone, the agency won retained and project work for companies leading in their sectors and was recognised on the shortlist for ‘Agency of the Year’ at the Creative Bath Awards 2021. During this time Gillingham, who regularly is invited to speak on travel tech and female entrepreneurship panels, podcasts, and webinars, has been nominated for an award as an industry pioneer.

Jessica Gillingham commented, “It’s very unusual for a UK-based agency to have its entire client base located around the world, and a sign that we have well and truly carved out a niche for ourselves within this dynamic sector. I’m particularly proud to credit our company’s success to the talented team we have built, who all hail from within the South West and delighted to celebrate this milestone with them and our clients today.”

For more information about Abode PR, please visit abode-pr.com.

9 June 2021, Bath, UK: Abode PR, the Bath-based, award-winning global B2B technology public relations agency, is delighted to celebrate an outstanding year for the business with new international clients, a growing headcount, and an exciting brand refresh. 

Abode PR was created in 2017 by Founder & Director Jessica Gillingham, also a former director of Visit Bath, after identifying a niche in the short-term rental market for a quality public relations service. “I grew up in Bath, which is not only a beautiful city but has a strong tech industry,” says Jessica. “It was a fantastic place to launch a tech startup that, in turn, serves tech startups in the hospitality, travel and real estate industries all over the world.”

Guesty and Rentals United were some of the first clients on the books, both leaders in their sectors. Fast forward to 2021 and Abode PR’s client roster includes companies located as far flung as Boston, Milan, Seattle and Toronto. Reside Worldwide, a leading provider of professionally managed accommodations is one of the newest additions to Abode PR’s portfolio along with Breezeway, a leading property operations platform for holiday homes and hotels, and Operto, creators of hotel and vacation rental automated technology. 

Abode PR provides media relations, strategic communications services, content marketing and thought leadership development within its niche market, often working directly with the CEOs of their clients as they grow from their startup phase. With her insight into the industries they operate in, Jessica is frequently asked to contribute her expertise on global panels and conferences. 

Until recently, Abode PR was an all-woman team comprised of Helen Wedgewood, Jen Childs and Laura Bolton, with Jen and Laura having joined as PR Managers in 2021. Aaron Finn is the newest junior member of their growing team having graduated from nearby UWE with a degree in journalism last year. 

In light of this success, Abode PR has also rebranded and launched a new website to reflect its standing as leading experts in the sector.

Jessica adds: “It’s been an exciting and busy time for Abode PR, which has been worth celebrating. We’re especially proud to have carved out a name for ourselves in the industry internationally from our hub in the South West and hope to inspire other local startups in doing so.”

For more information about Abode PR, please visit https://abode-pr.com/