dobbernationLOVES Toronto’s Top PR Pros

On one sunny afternoon a few weeks ago I found myself staring up at the ceiling after having written some 13 blog posts in a day. My fingers ached and my ass felt like a pancake. This is what my Saturday’s have turned into, the busiest writing days of my week. On June 1st when I decided to quit my job and start blogging full time I had no clue how my work schedule was really going to pan out. These days my Monday to Friday looks like this:

• rise out of bed, immediately pour espresso over ice, additional whisper of Baileys Irish Cream
• boot up the computer, stare at face in bathroom mirror, whimper
• immediately post, tweet, pinterest, facebook my blog of the day
• the rest of my day is spent answering anywhere from 30-50 press releases and requests for restaurant reviews or media events
• always make sure to take a break and head to the gym for an afternoon swim. This is the one time of the day I have the opportunity to relax and enjoy solitude “therapy.” My best creative brainstorms have happened in the pool. This is also my anti-obesity measure.
• evenings consist of restaurant reviews featuring many a beverage, excessive meals and a party, theatre opening or art gallery adventure

I first met Shawn to chat about our love for food at Luma one cold November night when I first moved to the city. As many of you know I am predominantly recognized as a food blogger in Toronto having reviewed some 400 local restaurants in the last 3 years. I have attended a wild and wonderful number of media dinners put on by a plethora of PR company’s. Hands down Shawn’s Butter team host the best media dinners in the city. He stands out as his restaurants are always top notch and his press list always includes the cities top traditional and online food media. If you own a restaurant in Toronto and are looking to make a PR connection with the cities top food writers Butter PR is your best bet for quality coverage. A few of my favorite Butter media dinners includes: Bangkok Garden, Mideastro and Lil Baci Taverna.

Nicole Manes at NKPR

I have worked with Nicole at NKPR on a few fun pieces. She is always great at getting back to me quickly and loves to work collaboratively to showcase the brands she reps. I have worked with her client The Bloor Yorkville BIA to highlight the neighbourhoods best offerings for the summer and winter Licious season. Some of my favorites from the past include Pangea, Annona and Prime.

She also reps Skyy Vodka, Aperol, Campari and Frangelico (all of which I stock in my liquor cabinet aka Ikea bookshelf). I featured these beverage brands in my Italian inspired Viva Italia cocktail coverage as well as my Canadian Beef Spring Dinner Party. This past winter I was also invited to a party NKPR hosted at Neubacher Shor Contemporary entitled Gentlemen Prefer where I was able to take snap shots of this artsy evening which featured several of their brands. I look forward to working with Nicole and her NKPR family more closely!

Beatrice at Trillium Corporate Communications

Beatrice is a fire cracker! She has just as much energy and passion for her work and food that I do (which really does say something). I always love getting emails from Beatrice as she works in the Canadian farming niche repping Canada Beef, Ontario Egg Farmers and the Dairy Farmers of Canada. My first event with Beatrice was an incredibly well orchestrated educational seminar entitled Ultimate Meating with Canada Beef. Next up I worked on a fun French Toast Challenge promo for Ontario Egg Farmers which allowed me to get creative in the kitchen doing a bit of recipe development. Most recently I visited the CNE to showcase the The 2012 Grate Canadian Grilled Cheese Cookoff for Dairy Farmers of Canada.

Candace Huntly at Casacom

Candace has arms of steal and an ability to work at the top of her game with very little sleep. I collaborated with her when Iogo Yogurt launched across the country in August. With such a massive PR and marketing push across Canada in one of the countries most competitive grocery product segments I was impressed with her ability to deliver beyond my expectations. With little sleep she ran around the city with a hoard of dancers a la flash mob. She also lugged five bags filled with yogurt up to my apartment in one go. I look forward to working more closely with Candace and her Montreal based Cascaom team to create fun and unique content with a little dobbernaton buzz on the interweb.

Laura Simpson at Empire PR

I recently met Laura when I connected with her for a piece I was writing, “Lessons on Leather with Roots Canada.” She was excellent at getting back to me during our first initial emails and helped me create a story about the company’s quality leather products which I hadn’t initially intended on telling. We first met at the Bloor flagship store where she showcased the brand in all of its many colours. She picked me up a week later to visit the Roots Leather Factory where I had the opportunity to showcase a behind the scenes look at how their products are made. I also joined her at a TIFF launch party that her client Sailor Jerry hosted at the Drake Hotel. Laura has an enthusiasm for Toronto and a passion for communication which I look forward to continuing to tap in to.

Elissa Freeman at @elissapr Communications

I first met Elissa this past summer on a Hogtown themed Ride and Go Feast. It was the launch of the concept, a fun food focussed city tour of Toronto with profits going to the Daily Bread Food Bank. I had the opportunity to also meet Elissa’s partner in crime, Jenny Frankel, the creator and owner of Eatzclub. Elissa does such a great job at connecting with people who share a common thread: living their lives with passion and purpose. Over the next few weeks I would chat with Jenny and Elissa back and forth about the Eatzclub concept: a dining membership club that donates a portion of its profits to the Daily Bread Food Bank. With a passion for giving back I was pleased to partner with Elissa and Jenny to help promote a great restaurant experience which allows people to eat out at top notch restaurants in the city while helping fight hunger within Toronto.