January’s Spotlight interview is with our wonderful Senior Account Manager, Hema Kukadia.
How did you end up in Partnerships?
I ended up in Partnerships by accident! I studied Graphics at London College of Communications and saw a design job and thought I’d give it a go. I applied for a position at Grassroots in Teddington, I thought it was something to do with vouchers. How hard could it be? They offered me the job immediately. It was a mix of Account Management and designing vouchers, I had no idea what I was getting into, clearly! I ended up saying yes and have continued to work in Client Services since, for Partnerships and Creative agencies. I’ve never regretted that happy accident.
What’s your favourite partnership you’ve seen?
One that I keep bragging about to this day is Sanrio’s Mr. Men partnership with Heathrow Airport. I was working for a lovely Partnerships and Creative agency, and we were approached by Sanrio to run their licensing partnerships project. The challenge was identifying brands Mr. Men hadn’t worked with and open up conversations with quick fire propositions as to why the two brands should work together. It was a tough project. We proudly met our KPI’s and the biggest and most successful conversation to come out of it was with Heathrow Airport where, excitingly, Mr. Adventure was born in time to be displayed around Heathrow for the Rugby World Cup. The travelling family grew over the years and Miss Explorer was added to the mix. To this day, it makes me smile when I go to the airport and see the partnership grow over so many years – and I fly out of Heathrow a lot!
What made you decide to study a naturopathic course?
I have been studying naturopathy since I was 20. I knew from a very early age what foods didn’t/did suit me, but I couldn’t articulate it or understand why certain ailments were cured by what I was eating and listening to what my body needed. It was very difficult for a child of the 80’s who loved penny sweets, but didn’t understand why they didn’t like me. I fell quite ill in my late teens and was introduced to a naturopath. Meds were not working, and the naturopath started to introduce certain foods into my diet, things I had never heard of before like miso and spirulina, who knew 20 odd years ago! Anyway, it worked, so I read a lot of books about food (yum!) and started doing short courses in naturopathy and thought why not do a diploma in it. I won’t lie, it’s hard but I’m definitely enjoying it. I love seeing how my small bits of advice have helped people around me – I introduced juicing to my household 20 years ago and it’s helped my elderly parents with their cholesterol and reducing diabetes, to this day they still juice and call themselves ‘bionic’!
Does your course help you discover new partnerships?
Yes! I am constantly looking at new brands from supplements to aids that help me wind-down like an acupressure mat. Most recently, I have been looking into a brand called Rheal Superfoods. I’ve been researching them for a while now, it’s a great powder drink that has amazing nutrients and vitamins from the foods within it. I tend to look at ingredients to make sure they tick all the boxes of sustaining a healthy lifestyle the natural way. I’ve studied the ingredients and there is a flavour for anyone. We recently included them in a strategic brand partnership recommendation for a client, who has a focus on health and wellbeing. They were caught googling straight away! One thing led to another and, hopefully, we will have a successful relationship with them for several our clients.
What’s one destination on your bucket list outside of Dubai?
I really want to visit Japan; eat lots of ramen, see the beautiful cherry blossom, experience the contrast of culture and architecture from classic to modern.
I would also love to visit Italy, it has always been a dream of mine to take a very long time off and drive around while eating everything in sight, visiting the beautiful coastlines and villages while meeting lots of new people, but mainly to eat and drink lots of authentic Italian cuisine!
What’s a fact about yourself that surprises people?
I’m a blanket fiend – I have blankets for all seasons, it’s a comfort thing that never left me from childhood!
What’s your favourite part of your job?
Making connections, building relationships, and creating a partnership between brand and client with aspirational results that have a seamless customer journey – end-to-end.
What would you be as a cocktail?
June bug! It’s the first cocktail I loved at the age of 19, 241 at a bar in Richmond when lucky hour first started. I love it because it’s quite punchy, like sweets in a glass and looks so retro. Great film too!
What’s your favourite vegetarian meal?
Too many to pick from! A simple arrabiatta, miso aubergine, green curry with coconut rice, my mum’s fresh hand made samosas, okra curry… I could go on!
What’s your dream brand you want to work with?
It changes constantly, I’m lucky enough to work with a variety of brands for my clients and through studying, it’s like a toy shop out there right now! I’m currently working on a really exciting partnership for one of our clients. I’m so proud of our team for pulling this one out of the bag but also secretly I would love to work with this brand. They aren’t the biggest or most well-known, but I love how a small business is evolving in a saturated market and is pulling out the stops to create simple products accessible to most. It’s run by experienced and recognisable names in the industry but their aspirations to grow resonate with me. And I would love to be a professional food sampler! Also, Lego and anything Star Wars related, obviously!
