From big-name store launches and exciting new openings to viral influencer moments that have captured hearts (and a few million views), September 2026 has certainly gone down in the Umpf history books. We’ve been helping our clients make headlines, generate a buzz and deliver some brilliant results. Add in a few furry friends, a very special shopping trip and some team-building fun, and there’s plenty to catch up on. Here’s what we’ve been up to lately… 👀
Student Shopper Sweep delivers big results in Cardiff and Leeds
The popular Student Shopper Sweep returned to both St David’s Cardiff and Trinity Leeds, delivering strong results across both centres. The team supported with press release and distribution, alongside photography and videography, helping to generate 48 pieces of coverage and a combined reach of 23 million across key titles in each region including South Wales Argus, FOR Cardiff and Wales247, and Yorkshire Evening Post, Bradford Telegraph & Argus, and Visit Leeds.
Lefties’ Launch at Liverpool ONE
Liverpool ONE welcomed the UK’s first ever Lefties store back in August. We supported with a press release announcing the opening date, as well as supporting the launch event with a follow-up release and inviting local media down, achieving more than 35 pieces of coverage with a reach of 60m+, including this fantastic piece from BBC News. We organised a visit from their social team on the launch day and secured coverage on their Instagram page, which boasts 30m followers.
New Arrivals at Trinity Leeds
We’ve supported our client Trinity Leeds with lots of exciting new openings recently, including the launch of K-beauty retailer Moida, Pho’s new restaurant on Boar Lane, and the latest Trinity Kitchen changeover, where five new street food vendors joined the line-up. We achieved 58 pieces of coverage with a reach of 21.8m for the Moida launch, which saw us support with press releases and influencer support around the launch. Meanwhile, the opening of Pho’s new restaurant achieved 18 pieces of coverage with a reach of 6.9m, and the Trinity Kitchen changeover achieved 25 pieces of coverage with a reach of 1.85m. We’ve also been inviting select influencers to come down and try it for themselves, so there’s more coverage yet to come!
Cracking influencer milestones
In showbiz, they always say you should never work with children, animals and… the elderly? Well, over in Influencer World at Umpf HQ, we’ve had plenty of standout campaigns and client moments featuring all three – and they’re very much worth a shoutout.
First up, we head to Clarks Village, where we partnered with the cutest chef on the internet, @cookingwithcarterofficial. At the Somerset shopping outlet’s annual Street Food Festival, Carter took his role as ‘official food taster’ very seriously and sampled a range of fantastic global cuisines. The result was a very tasty video that racked up a whopping 1.4M views and over 1.3M engagements across Instagram and TikTok.
The Influencer team at Umpf is connected to the hottest names across fashion, entertainment, beauty and everything in between… including some very famous four-legged creators. 🐶 For our client DogFest and its DogFest at the Palace event, we teamed up with old furry friend @_violasnow to raise awareness of the event and announce an all-important Viola meet-and-greet. Because what’s a dog event without a chance to meet one of the internet’s most famous four-legged faces?
The announcement achieved 1.1M views on Instagram, and lots of excited fans desperate to meet the most beautiful dog on the internet.
And finally, a touching moment on social media that sparked huge reach for White Rose. When content creator and dream-maker, @_baileygreetham, asked 86-year-old care home resident Judith what her one wish in life would be in his TikTok, she answered: “To go shopping, and have, not too much money, but enough money to buy myself a lovely outfit.” So, team Umpf sprung into action.
Time was of the essence for this campaign, with Umpf inviting Bailey and Judith to White Rose in Leeds for a shopping spree and day out just 24 hours after the first viral video. They jumped at the chance to shop with the whole experience captured and shared across social media. The heartwarming story has since reached more than 5M people across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. Watch here if you fancy a little heartwarming moment 🥹
And the story didn’t stop there. Bailey organically shared a follow-up ‘haul reveal’ video, helping to keep Judith’s story – and the conversation around White Rose – growing.
But that’s not all for this duo… keep your eyes peeled for more from Bailey and Judith!
Building team bonds with Mr Bricks
September’s Last Thursday Club saw the Umpf gang get together to celebrate client wins and employee shout-outs followed by some fun with LEGO masters Bricks McGee.
Along with our colleagues at The Right Agency and Yasper, we worked in teams to battle it out in a series of LEGO challenges, including replicating our favourite ever PR stunts – with plenty of laughs too boot!
