Event Coordinator - Crafts

Event Coordinator – Craft Events (up to £27,000)

At Immediate, we’re home to some of the biggest and most loved consumer brands in the UK, including Radio Times, Good Food and Gardeners World. Our trusted, quality content reaches millions of people a month across digital, print, video, podcasts, apps and live events.

We’re the destination for people looking to get more from the things they love. We help inspire them; deepening their knowledge, skills and fuelling their passions, to enjoy more of what life has to offer.

Whether it’s the big things, or the little things; from reaching fitness goals to savouring good food, cultivating outdoor, or indoor, spaces, or enjoying the latest TV sensation with loved ones – we help bring our audiences joy!

About the role

We are looking for someone who is highly organised, self-motivated, and a strong team player who is passionate about their products. You will be part of the team working across the Craft events portfolio, which includes 5 market leading events: The Festival of Quilts (Birmingham), The Knitting & Stitching Shows (London/ Harrogate/ Belfast) and The Stitch Festival London).  For over 30-years, The Knitting & Stitching Shows have grown to become the market leading consumer textiles exhibition in the UK, offering a winning formula of inspiration, learning and shopping that appeals not only to craft hobbyists, but also to textile artists and professionals.

The Festival of Quilts was launched in 2003 in partnership with The Quilters’ Guild as a hub for people from all over the world to come together and share their passion for quilting. 20 years on and it is now the biggest quilting show in Europe with over 22,000 quilting fanatics expected to attend this year.

The Stitch Festival is the youngest of our brands and the leading London event for contemporary dressmaking, sewing and stitch. The show offers access to some of the most exciting independent brands and small businesses, a series of inspiring displays from leading designers, plus catwalk shows, demos and Q&As from sewing celebs and hundreds of workshops.

The role of the Event Coordinator is to support in managing the day-to-day delivery of several key elements of the events, including show features, competitions, programming, delivery of sponsorship benefits and account management as well as various administrative tasks. The Event Co-ordinator will also be required to work onsite at all five events.

Requirements

General

• Support the Event Director and broader team to maximise the commercial success of the events, through the effective delivery of key content, programming and features to meet both event and sponsor KPI’s.
• Support the Event Director and broader team to achieve a smooth running of the events, implementing efficient processes and organised systems.

Competitions and Awards

• Manage the overall process of The Festival of Quilts competition, to maximise entries and ensure a seamless process for applicants, sponsors and installation teams. Tasks would include technical support with the entry form, managing email enquiries and the database of entries.
• Overseeing processes / logistics for delivery and return of entries, support with the Awards presentation, and liaison with competition judges, hanging teams and logistics teams, providing documentation where necessary.
• Manage the entire process for The Fine Art Textiles Award, creating an entry form, managing the judging process and alerting entrants of their success and then ongoing arrangements for the exhibition and transportation of works.

Programming

• Support the Event Director in organising and managing content at each show, including Knitting Lounges and other features.
• Write, issue and manage contracts for the contributors (including tutors, demonstrators and artists) at the events, where required.
• Liaison with judging panels as required including seeking promotional headshots etc.
• Responsible for logistics relating to contributors and judges, including sending links to order passes, instructions, judging criteria etc.
• Manage contra stands for partners and contributors, ensuring floor plan is updated and taking responsibility for providing full information.

On site Responsibilities

• Responsibility for getting iPads and card readers set up and taken on site to allow payments to be taken for Show Guides and Merchandise.
• Manage any stationery, printers and other on-site supplies to take on site and purchase anything necessary.
• Support the competition or workshop teams on site as required.

Essential Qualities

• Highly organized with excellent time management.
• Strategic mindset.
• Ability to pay close attention to detail.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Passion for organizing events.
• Ambition to grow, develop and learn within career.
• Desire to network with others to build a better business. 

Desirable Criteria

• Experience in consumer events or exhibitions.
• Demonstrable market and industry knowledge.

Benefits

• A relaxed working environment with regular socials including a summer festival
• Immediate Community webinars, well-being initiatives and Mental Health First aiders
• 25 days holiday plus a day for your birthday. Our offices will be closed between Christmas and New Year’s which are in addition to your annual entitlement
• Tailored training and development through our Love Learning platform
• A progressive and transparent culture with clear career progression
• Flexible/hybrid working plus early finish Fridays
• Cycle to work scheme
• Enhanced Family Policies including paternity, adoption and surrogacy leave. We also provide a pregnancy loss, fertility, and carers policy
• Competitive pension plans and Life Assurance
• A newly renovated modern office with lots of collaborative spaces

We pride ourselves on our open, collaborative, and dynamic culture. This encourages our people to thrive, and give their best whilst being supported, developed, and nurtured. As we care about our people, our environment, and the impact we make, we have an active Diversity and inclusion network, comprehensive well-being programmes, and clear sustainability strategies.

Diversity, equity and inclusion are at the heart of all our values and leadership behaviours to ensure Immediate remains a place where everyone feels included and empowered;

We care

We succeed together

We enjoy the ride

We are bold

We never settle

We get on with it

People are at the heart of our business and creating a diverse and inclusive working environment is extremely important to us. Immediate is an equal opportunities employer. We’ll never treat anyone less favourably because of their sex, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, marital/civil partnerships, sexual orientation, race, nationality, ethnic origin, age, religion or belief or disability. We’re also committed to supporting applications from those who are returning to work following a career break, maternity leave or caring responsibilities.