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Shining the spotlight on a local landmark - bringing strategic PR to The Bristol hotel
Bringing a new lease of life to one of Bristol's most iconic harbourside hotels through strategic PR and influencer outreach.
The Bristol Hotel
Chances are you’ve walked past The Bristol hotel more times than you know, but have you ever stopped to consider that behind its brutalist concrete facade (which is listed, don’t you know!) is one of the city’s most luxurious destinations to eat, drink and stay.
So when the team approached us to help put The Bristol back on the map, not just as a place to stay but as a venue boasting not one, but two spectacular drinking and dining spots, the answer was a resounding ‘when can we start?!’
The Bristol is part of the esteemed Doyle Collection, an Irish hotel group with sites across Ireland, London, Bristol and Washington DC. Known for their luxurious escapes and unrivalled knowledge of their cities, the team were keen to really put themselves back at the forefront of Bristol’s food and drink scene, which is where we came into play.
The Bristol is home to two of arguably the best ‘hidden gem’ waterfront spots on the harbourside. First up is The River Grille; a Parisian style bistro with floor to ceiling glass windows and a gorgeous vista across the harbour. It’s one of those spots that people will walk past without knowing it’s there, and with a new seasonal menu to launch, the team were eager to put this gem firmly in the spotlight.
Then there’s Rick’s - a jaw-droppingly chic cocktail bar, with a terrace just *made* for enjoying a sundowner whilst watching the world go by. They too had a new seasonal menu launching, and with a brief to gain both local and national press coverage, as well as raising the profile of the venue’s food and drinks options, we set to work…
What they needed
What we did
We approached the brief with a multi-pronged tactic, splitting things out to cover the hotel itself, then The River Grille and Rick’s bar. We then created a variety of target titles, journalists and influencers, covering travel, food, local and lifestyle, before setting out our campaigns.
We began with the biggest aspect of the brief - national travel coverage. Working with national journalists is a long game, and with travel journalists being some of the busiest people out there, we created a general press pack which could cover the hotel across all seasons. We then began outreach, offering up invites for a date of their choice which could work with their busy schedule and their upcoming features lists.
For more local and food related press we got stuck into some traditional press outreach, sending carefully crafted press releases about all of the upcoming news to relevant local journalists and listings websites.
Finally, we planned an influencer campaign which would cover both The River Grille and Rick’s, factoring in an invite-only launch evening as well as an ongoing review campaign. Guests visited for a complimentary three course dinner at The River Grille, followed by cocktails at Rick’s, all in return for some absolutely glorious coverage.
Jane Guy, Director of Sales and Marketing
“We are delighted to have recently started to work with Duchess Media. From a strategic point of view they quickly understood the briefs and the desired outcomes and just “got us” as a business to allow their creative ideas to dovetail with our requirements. From the working together angle they are a joy; organised, pro active, creative and lovely people to work with. Quite simply, they feel like a natural extension of our team.”
The Bristol Hotel
The campaigns were a huge success, and as well as gaining column inches and plenty of new followers for the brand, we’re grown an excellent working relationship with the amazing team at The Bristol, as well as having countless friends and peers telling us how they visited The River Grille and Rick’s after seeing our work. It may not be as tangible as the stats, but these are the kind of things which really make our jobs so special.
So onto the numbers! Throughout the quarter, we amassed:
- Seven pieces of national and local coverage, including Conde Nast Traveller
- 14 influencer visits
- 60.1k views across social media
- Almost 3,500 engagements
- An engagement rate of 5.6% - well above the industry average
We’re now well into Q1 planning, so you’ll want to keep an eye on The Bristol hotel, The River Grille and Rick’s as trust us - there’s some VERY exciting things coming up for 2026!