Introducing TDC’s newest member: Abbey Bamford

Former Senior Reporter at Design Week, Abbey Bamford, has joined the TDC PR team as Account Manager & Copywriter. Her passion for writing and fostering connections within the industry will be well placed within the TDC team where she will continue advocating for design and cultivating relationships with clients within the creative space. She has a BA in English Literature and Creative Writing from Lancaster University, a Journalism MA from Kingston University and an NCTJ Gold Certification. Read more about Abbey here!

Tell us a bit about yourself!

I have joined TDC as an Account Manager & Copywriter, working on a range of clients across the agency’s broad portfolio including Pearlfisher, Robilant, Pentawards, Echo and Panasonic, as well as design and creative copywriting across the business. 

Before TDC, I was Senior Reporter at leading design industry title, Design Week for almost two years, focusing on the sectors of branding, interiors, product, exhibition design and more.

My passions are food, literature and music (I play piano very well and a few other instruments very badly). For the most part I’m an extrovert but once I get stuck into writing or reading, I go into my own little world.

What is your favourite cultural spot in London?

I’m really into library bars at the minute as I just love being around books and fellow book nerds. My current favourites are The Library Lounge in Kings Cross and the Library Bar at The Bush Theatre. I don’t know if this counts as a cultural spot but I also like to find pubs with interesting architecture/decor or a literature-related history, of which there are plenty of in London.

What’s a recent/past project you’re proud of?

I started a ‘Meet the Graduate’ miniseries when I was at Design Week for which I interviewed graduates from 12 universities across the UK about their final project and future career plans. In my opinion, graduates and young designers are underserved across design media and I wanted to give them a platform to showcase their work. From this, I made some great connections, especially with heads of design courses who were able to give me first hand knowledge of the design education landscape. Some students who featured in the series were even contacted by studios about jobs and internships, so it was a fruitful project all round.

What’s the most surprising/interesting thing about your job/industry right now?

What has always surprised me while working across design journalism and PR is how people outside of the design industry have no idea how much it affects almost everything they interact with. I’d say what drives me is the need to get that information out there across design and national media, something which I’ll be able to do on a larger scale at TDC.

In your previous job you were a journalist– what drew you to journalism in the first place, and how has your journey been so far?

I love writing in any capacity and journalism seemed like a natural career for me. I didn’t expect to find myself at Design Week, but I’m very glad to have accidentally fallen into this diverse and innovative industry. I think one of the most interesting subject areas I’ve learnt about is material innovation (biomaterials in particular). I’ve seen everything from installations made out of natural sugar produced in our bodies to pink salt door handles that can kill bacteria. I was lucky to have met so many industry experts through the magazine and I’m happy to be at TDC where I can continue cultivating those relationships and connections.

What motivated or inspired you to make the career transition into PR?

As well as working with TDC’s amazing and innovative clients, I’m most looking forward to developing the TDC blog and establishing our own voice within the industry alongside Tim and the team. There are so many editorial opportunities here, which I never expected to have at a PR firm but ultimately drove me to make the switch from full time journalism to PR.

How can you see your previous experience as a journalist contributing to TDC’s goals?

While PR and copywriting is now my full time job, I’ll continue as a freelance journalist as the skills needed for these roles are interchangeable and adaptable. What I’ve learnt about the media landscape and what editors look for in a story will definitely feed into my work at TDC, while my continued work across journalism will sharpen my writing skills and help me to keep my finger on the pulse with emerging trends in the design industry and beyond.

Reach out to Abbey to learn more about her job role at TDC.