2025 has come to a close, and the Umpf team are setting sights on the new year ahead. But before we do, we wanted to take a look back at all the amazing work both the Leeds and London teams have delivered for our clients over the last twelve months. Read on for our 2025 highlights…
December
We wrapped up 2025 with a standout PR moment when Clarks Village challenged us to create a bold PR stunt ahead of Lando Norris’s Formula One title bid. Our idea? Renaming a street at the Somerset outlet in honour of the local hero.
With no certainty of a championship win, the campaign was fully planned and ready to launch at a moment’s notice. When Lando secured the title, we moved fast – unveiling the new ‘Lando Lane’ street sign at Clarks Village within 24 hours.
The result was nearly 100 pieces of coverage, including BBC national and local, PA Media, Getty, ITV and Greatest Hits Radio. Read more about the campaign here.
Also at Clarks Village, our Influencer team celebrated a major milestone with a standout piece of content. As part of our influencer strategy, Viola the Husky (@_violasnow) paid a visit to the outlet, creating a Reel that delighted guests, staff and social media audiences alike. The result was a viral moment, with the Instagram Reel surpassing 1 million views in December.
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For premium chocolate brand, Divine, we ended the year on a divinely sweet moment. The team achieved print and online coverage in The Guardian, and not one, but two online pieces in Daily Mirror.
We also supported new client, Mercato Metropolitano, with news of their 2026 plans at Elephant & Castle. Our first press release landed 18 pieces of coverage, including a broadcast piece on BBC London, as well as features in The Standard, MyLondon, BBC online and trade coverage in The Caterer and Caterlyst.
November
In November, we brought the Christmas magic to life with Christmasville, in partnership with Apollodomes at Gunwharf Quays. The magical family-friendly experience included a traditional Santa’s Grotto along with lots of entertainment, an immersive theatre, puppetry and projection event.
Our launch campaign garnered 115 pieces of media regional and national coverage and had a reach of over 23 million, with coverage from major outlets like The i and Heat.
After the success of last year’s Santa Skate at Clarks Village, we had to find a way to top it, so we set out to have the world’s biggest Elf Skate. Guests could dress up as elves to receive a free ticket to the event, and we brought Santa and his head elf down from the North Pole to host an event filled with music, fun and festive treats.
193 elves attended the celebration (40 more than last year!) and two live ITV broadcasts captured the Christmas joy.
Speaking of world records, at White Rose shopping centre we enlisted Leeds Knights players Liam Peyton and Balint Pakozdi to join almost 250 locals in an attempt to break the record for the most high fives in 30 seconds.
Both Look North and Leeds TV were there to capture the cheers of the crowd as the record was broken!
To round off November, luxury bedmakers Harrison Spinks launched overseas for the first time, and we secured 25 pieces of coverage for this, including major outlets such as Big Furniture Group and Bed Times.
October
With the return of Leeds Light Night, the iconic Spark! Drummers made their return with a jaw-dropping performance at Trinity Leeds in October
Ahead of the event, we drove coverage including a piece from BBC News and a double-page spread in Yorkshire Evening Post.
Our work didn’t end when the event did, and the Umpf team continued to gain coverage on regional sites such as Leeds Live and Welcome to Yorkshire, solidifying Trinity Leeds as a central figure in the event.
All you need to know about Light Night Leeds 2025 https://t.co/a4aQsfDlCt
— BBC Yorkshire (@BBCLookNorth) October 22, 2025
At Westwood Cross shopping centre, we launched a nationwide and regional campaign to welcome American restaurant chain Captain D’s to the UK.
We secured coverage from FOODBible, The Sun and Time Out to name a few, with a reach of over 49 million, as well as an exclusive interview with Captain D’s Chairman, Daryl Stutchbury, for MCA Insights.
We supported White Rose Shopping Centre with its annual Community Awards to showcase inspirational people and organisations in Leeds, and were elated to be amongst those recognised!
Our nomination credited the team’s support during the Centre’s busiest year. While our nomination made the event brilliant enough, we also secured coverage of the event and its worthy winners, including a double-page spread in the Yorkshire Evening Post.
September
In September, we recruited 8-year-old content creator Big Zayn (@bigzayn101) as part of our Landsec Influencer Programme to visit Bluewater and create content in his bold, energetic style – and the result didn’t disappoint. His day out at the centre garnered over 1.4 million views, bringing Bluewater to the attention of new audiences.
@bigzayn101 AD What would YOU buy with £100 at Bluewater? Here’s what I picked. I think I spent it wisely @Bluewater #bluewater #bluewatershopping #lovebluewater
As schools started back, so did our Student Sweeper events at Trinity Leeds and St David’s in Cardiff for students to shop, get exclusive discounts, and win prizes.
We worked to host both PR and influencer partnerships in the lead-up to the events to generate sign-ups for the centre’s reward schemes and delivered results that speak for themselves.
Working with six influencers and the media we gained a reach of over 2 million, and saw an 18% increase in student sign-ups for both centres.
August
To kick off August, we worked with White Rose Shopping Centre to launch a limited edition chocolate bar, created with expert chocolatier Youlden’s of Yorkshire. It was available exclusively to White Rose PLUS+ members and within 48 hours, there was an increase of 245 PLUS+ sign-ups.
We also brought live music to Trinity Leeds by launching Trinity Kitchen Sessions, with weekly live sessions during the summer holidays highlighting local talent. It was headlined by Yorkshire singer-songwriter ADMT, with a packed gig, the initiative drove footfall to Trinity Kitchen and solidified its status at the hot hangout spot in Leeds.
The events had a media and social reach exceeding 16 million. Umpf also coordinated filming with ITV This Morning for the style segment with Lisa Snowden, featuring the centre’s brands live on air,and the centre being shown for 14 minutes on screen.
With the live broadcasts and the segments being shared to ITV socials, the total reach came out to over 6.5 million.
July
In July, we launched a ‘Busk Stop’ at Buchanan Galleries in Glasgow, to help promote aspiring musicians by giving them a free space in the centre to showcase their talents. Among them was 11-year-old singer Rachel Ronnie, who we partnered with for this campaign to shine a light on Glaswegian talent.
The launch generated over 200 pieces of coverage both regionally and nationally, including from the Daily Mail and the Independent. Following this an MSP also lodged a motion in parliament expressing support for the campaign, another sign of the immense support for the event.
We also launched The Monster at Braintree Village, one of the world’s biggest inflatable assault courses.
We hosted a dedicated press and influencer launch evening where creators got to have a first go at completing the course, with attendees including Ferne McCann, regional titles and local influencers.
The campaign garnered over 100 pieces of media coverage and a reach of over 31 million, with multiple inclusions in The Sun and an influencer collaboration with dad and daughter duo, Paul and Pheobe (@puwtok) that earned almost one million views.
@puwtok never laughed so much?? The Monster @Braintree Village is a summer MUST!!! AD
July saw the Umpf team enjoy a day at the races for our annual summer social. We started with a decadent meal at The Ivy Asia in Leeds, before heading to York Racecourse – imagine big hats, lots of laughs, and photo finishes.
The great Umpf summer social is always something to look forward to, as it gives us some time to get together away from the office, reflect on a fantastic few months, and celebrate all the hard work our team has put in this year.
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June
In one of our best stunts, we worked with St David’s to commission artist Nathan Wyburn to create a portrait of the Gallagher brothers ahead of the Oasis reunion kicking off in Cardiff on 4th July. The artwork welcomed hundreds of pieces of coverage worldwide. Read more about it here: Umpf Case study: Oasis Bucket Hat Portrait PR Stunt – PR and Social Campaign
With Westwood Cross shopping centre celebrating 20 years in Broadstairs, we created a campaign that resonated with the local community by doing case studies of two long-serving team members, Tess and Wendy.
Their stories reached the hearts of millions, with live interviews on BBC Radio Kent and a feature on BBC news, the campaign brought the community spirit to life.
May
With Leeds United being promoted to the Premier League and be crowned Champions, it was only right to celebrate in style, and we did just that at Trinity Leeds.
We created an amazing photo op by emblazoning a 306-square-meter iconic LUFC ‘Smiley’ badge onto the centre’s glass dome roof. A ‘wall of support’ was also unveiled on the centre’s link bridge and fans had the chance to leave a message on LUFC t-shirt cardboard cutouts.
The stunt garnered hundreds of UGC posts, and increased footfall on the bridge by 57.6% in one day.
Gunwharf Quays began preparing for the official Portsmouth Pride in June early by unveiling five large-scale vibrant murals by regional artists exploring love, acceptance and unity.
Umpf invited media down to see the artwork as it was unveiled and secured 27 pieces of coverage for the campaign, including from Good Morning Britain and Greatest Hits Radio.
April
We started April by working with 4lite to launch the world’s first big light remote! Well not really, but it was the perfect April Fools’ Day prank.
The press release and expertly crafted image from our studio team gained national coverage and a reach of over 19 million, including from The Sun, the Mirror and Indy100. Check out our feature in Indy100
In April we won two gongs at the PR Moment Awards, where Umpf and St David’s received the Gold for Event of the Year and the Silver for Health, Beauty, Retail, & Fashion Marketing Communications Campaign of the Year. The judges said the work “was extremely fun and brought together a number of different demographics.”
March
In March, when Charlton manager Nathan Jones jokingly ‘banned’ his players from Bluewater shopping centre (our client) we spotted a great newsjacking PR stunt.
Within 36 hours, the Umpf team had produced a tongue-in-cheek video. The stunt ensured a reach of over 11.6 million, including coverage on BBC’s 72+ : The EFL Podcast Football Daily.
See the full Bluewater-Charlton newsjacking case study, including our video.
An excellent month for Bluewater with the PR circulation figures surpassing one BILLION for the first time ever.
The milestone came after a busy year filled with new openings and world firsts, including the Love Island pop-up store and the Elf on the Shelf Christmas Adventure.
February
In February, we collaborated with London-based artist, Ruki Chuki, who created a gorgeous mural on the exterior of Southside Shopping Centre and gave away 500 specially designed Valentine’s Day cards in the lead up to the holiday. The design featured a new perspective of Cupid as a confident young woman. The card symbolised how love can transcend boundaries and unite. A dedicated arts and crafts station was also set up within the centre for guests to add their own personal touch to cards.
Our press release generated 25 pieces of coverage and a stream of visitors came to the craft station, creating a loving buzz in the lead up to the big day.
January
To bring in the Chinese New Year, we worked with Gunwharf Quays to create social content featuring a giant animatronic snake scaling the outside of the 170-metre Spinnaker Tower. The digital stunt garnered a reach of over two million.
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In January, Buchanan Galleries, Glasgow made headlines for its record-breaking charity fundraising efforts, with coverage in the Glasgow Evening Times.
The centre raised over £75,000 with its festive initiatives like Santa’s Grotto!
2025 was a year to remember for us here at Umpf, and 2026 is set to bring more exciting campaigns, lots of hard work and lots of fun to boot ?
