Last year jellybean ran, walked, and cycled in aid of Hospitality Action’s ‘To Hell and Back’ tour. And this year, as we all rush back to restaurants, bars, and hotels to enjoy our favourite industry, jellybean has once again taken to the road to support Hospitality Action’s ‘Back in Business’ tour. Recently slammed by the ever-increasing cost of living and inflation, those in need in the hospitality industry still require our help.
For Easter this year, jellybean wanted to do something a little different…
As part of our journey to become more environmentally friendly, we sent out 150 seedball tins to the beans, our clients and foodie friends to scatter in their gardens and support the bee population.
When people think of Pennsylvania (PA), they often think of cheesesteaks and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, steel and sports in Pittsburgh, and of course between the two cities…farms. To me however, this is what I called home before I moved to England.
‘I never wanted to be employed simply because I was a token woman to fulfil a quota.’ This was what jellybean CEO Fiona said when asked about barriers in her career. Many women still feel this way and insight suggests there is still inequality in many industries. Even now, in 2022, it is likely to take 30 more years to reach gender parity at senior levels of the financial services industry*. In the advertising industry, 45% of women sit in leadership roles, however, a 10% pay gap still exists, with this gap rising to 24% as a whole**.
You may have heard of baked beans, but what about baking beans?
This year, we beans decided to bring a bit of healthy competition into the office via The Great British Bake Off! Soon we had an array of delicious baked goods piling high in the office, from Vanesa’s Strawberry Roulade to Sue’s Pork & Apricot Pie – it was stiff competition from the start. And despite reverting to WFH, the competition continued – much to our family and friends’ delight.
As the pandemic hit, the bean team not only managed to effectively work remotely and rework plans to the new world-order, they did it on a game-changing level. I can say this with absolute confidence as the proof sits in our boardroom along with our existing collection of gongs.
The hospitality and retail sector continue to be plagued with problems, from staff shortages to supply chain chaos. However, pop open the (English) bubbly! As there is hope to be had where British booze is concerned!
Charities have been one of the hardest hit sectors throughout the past 18 months both globally and much closer to home. Over its 35 year history, jellybean has sponsored literally hundreds of children and supported education projects in Africa through Plan International but in 2021, as we emerge from the effects of the pandemic, we wanted to keep things local and thus donated £10,000 to White Lodge in Chertsey to help save their Hydrotherapy pool and a further £10,000 to CWSNF, a Surrey based charity that I have been a patron of for many years. All funds raised through the foundation go straight to the point of need (all staff donate their time and expertise) and as a result CWSNF has a wide range of worthy applications to consider and allocate much needed funds to across the year. I was particularly delighted when the money was granted to an application from Woodlands School in Leatherhead (just a driver and 5 iron from jellybean HQ) to install Audio and Visual equipment in their Upper School Hall. What could be more worthy and more local than that!
Award season has arrived, and with it, not one, but two wins at the inaugural Alliance of Independent Agencies Wing Awards.
Tuesday 14th saw us walk away (figuratively as it was a virtual event) with both the Best B2B Campaign Award and Freedom Award for Agency Collaboration – one of three special awards recognising outstanding performance across areas where independent agencies have the freedom to excel.
We are always proud of the work we do for clients and treat the brands we work on as if they are our own. So when it comes to choosing which campaigns we put forward for awards it can be tough. This year we entered both the Alliance of Independent Agencies inaugural Wing Awards and the Oscars of the B2B world the B2B Marketing Awards. With bated breath we awaited the shortlist announcements of both and we are delighted to say that we made the grade with the both campaigns shortlisted for the categories entered, with…
Half the joy of travelling is all the food you get to eat, from tapas to ramen, the world is full of flavours that are ready to be explored. However, with foreign travel being fraught with problems this summer, I have instead decided to explore a few cookbooks that champion foreign flavours so to con my body into thinking I’m abroad.
If you see yourself as a culinary fan who has tasted foods from all over the world but has not yet explored Caribbean dishes, are you really a true culinary fan? In Caribbean culture, food is an integral aspect of life with many people spending days upon days preparing their food.
Jellybean has always been active in supporting a wide range of charities in its 34-year history and this year is no exception. In 2019 we helped build classrooms in the Gambella region of Ethiopia and in 2020 we supported a programme to continue education for girls in Zimbabwe as they struggled through the impacts of the global pandemic.
Anyone who knows me, knows that food and content creation is my jam. Social media marketing and foodie PR makes my heart sing, why? Because it’s all down to the food. Food is life. Food is pleasure. Food is comfort. Afterall, one cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well (thanks Virginia Woolf). I’ll go easy on the quotes now.
Vietnam is definitely my favourite country for food that I have visited so far. The variety is stunning, from Pho to spring rolls, strange looking fish to omelettes, stunning fresh vegetables to Banh Mi (breakfast baguettes) plus locally brewed beer and wine.
The last year has been a struggle for everyone. Not being able to go out and socialise with family and friends in a pub or restaurant, staying at home eating and drinking too much, trying to keep yourself sane and keep yourself from putting on the weight whilst binge watching series on TV. With all this in mind, to hear that Hospitality Action are setting a challenge for 2021 called ‘To Hell and Back’ to raise funds for the hospitality industry, I was more than excited to get involved.
When you think of Spain and Spanish cuisine, what are the first thoughts that come to mind? Paella? Tapas? Sangria? Me too, but Spanish cuisine consists of so much more than just paella and tapas (although they can never be ignored), and in recent years people have come to celebrate the extraordinary flavours and variety of produce that the cuisine has to offer.
As I’m fairly new to the ‘bean team’ and learning about the amazing work that Hospitality Action continuously do, I’ve been eager to dive head first into their 2021 initiative ‘To Hell and Back’ to raise funds for the industry that means so much to us all. Together with 16 of my teammates, we are committed to travelling 535 miles to contribute toward HA’s immense 30,000-mile total between 10th – 18th June, through walking/running and cycling (though I think by June 18th, quite a few of us will be crawling toward that G&T at the finishing line).
It never ceases to amaze me that the guys at jellybean are always up for a new challenge. No matter how busy they are juggling workload with a hectic home life, even if it eats into their personal time and requires them to go outside their comfort zone. Whether it’s a 100-mile bike ride, running a marathon, completing the moonwalk, taking on the 3 peaks challenge, or devoting time or expertise to a charity initiative – the beans will rise to the occasion with enthusiasm, commitment and determination. All whilst having fun as a team and enjoying the banter and camaraderie along the way.
