07 Mar Marketing is the creative outlet for talented painter, Katie

Katie got her first taste of working at Contacta as a small child when she and her sister accompanied her dad to the office.

Her grandfather, Bert, founded Contacta more than 50 years ago and her dad, Simon, is Managing Director.

Katie’s first love is painting, and she is a talented portrait artist.  Much as she might have wanted to make it her career, she knew that it would be difficult to earn a decent living from it.  So, when she finished her university fine art degree, she headed home and started work on Contacta’s reception desk.

She spent two years working across the business doing admin, supporting the sales team and recruiting staff as part of the HR department.

“It was nice to work in different areas,” she said.  “I got an understanding of the whole business.”

The creative call was strong, however, and she then moved to London to use her artistic skills in a creative studio specialising in CGI, photography and print-based advertising.

“I loved it there,” she recalled, “but then I met my partner, Kevin, and we started a family.  It wasn’t the kind of job that could give the flexibility I needed so I came back to Contacta.

“I’ve always been happy to return.  It’s just such a lovely company to work for, there’s a really nice feel about it.  I’ve grown up with some of the staff: Dean, our Technical Sales Manager, would be in the soldering room at our old premises in Charlton when Dad would take us into the office with him.  That was almost 30 years ago.  And there are many other employees who’ve been with Contacta for 20 plus years.  I think that says a lot about the company my dad and uncle have created.”

Katie is now a marketing executive, organising photo shoots and filming, and planning events.

“This role has got a bit more of a creative element which really suits me,” Katie said.  “I’m learning something every day.”

She would like to dedicate more time to painting but that’s for the future; her eight-year-old daughter and two year old son – plus two cats and working for the family business – mean her days are full.