LONDON — Grayling UK has hired Kat McGettigan as its new head of consumer PR as the agency seeks to reinvigorate its offer for consumer brands.

McGettigan arrives from M&C Saatchi PR where she was head of consumer, having joined in 2013 as an associate director. She led the 40-strong consumer team and headed up client services across the agency, working with clients including Dixons Carphone, Virgin Active, Red Bull and Co-op Food.

Her arrival follows Grayling’s hire of Ketchum director Andrew Ferguson as creative director last summer as part of its investment in deeper creative capabilities across its practices.

Sarah Scholefield, CEO Grayling UK & Ireland, said: “Kat’s appointment signals a commitment to investing in our UK consumer practice. We have been strategically enhancing Grayling UK over the last 18 months with some key hires, and believe, with Kat’s arrival, we now have a compelling and competitive consumer proposition to meet client demands and deliver excellent work. Kat brings bags of energy, ambition and experience with her and we’re delighted to welcome her to the team.”

McGettigan left M&C Saatchi at the end of 2017 and started leading the 20-strong consumer team at Grayling three weeks ago. She told the Holmes Report: “I decided to have some time out. I had a fantastic time at M&C Saatchi but I was ready for a fresh challenge. When I met Sarah and Andrew, I liked their openness and honesty about where they wanted to take the consumer brand. It’s a real challenge to get stuck into and an opportunity to reshape and rebuild Grayling’s consumer credentials and look at more integration across the practices.”

She added that her brief was to consolidate and grow the consumer brands offer: “I want Grayling to be known for consumer brand work again, and to bring in more brands that the team can get excited about and be proud of. We won’t be on 17 rosters overnight but we’ll have clarity and direction. For me, it’s about us being bolder and braver and doing work you wouldn’t necessarily expect from Grayling.”

Before joining M&C Saatchi, McGettigan was part of the consumer team at Weber Shandwick, including leading EDF Energy’s sponsorship of London 2012. She also spent time at Talk PR and Shine Communications.