- Client Servicing
The one with the Queen Camilla
A few people – clients included – have asked why ALL Creative specialises in both health and heritage destinations. Or, Palaces and Pills, as I like to call it.
At first glance, the two sectors seem worlds apart. But in reality, they share more than you might think, and our creative skills naturally lend themselves to both.
Each is complex in its own way. Communicating a nation’s history and making it relevant, engaging, and truthful is just as intricate as distilling scientific fact into something emotionally resonant for people striving to stay well.
Both involve layers of stakeholders, from trustees and curators safeguarding the nation’s history to regulatory and medical bodies upholding honesty and safety in healthcare.
And both demand creative thinking, patience, and attention to detail; skills that ensure communication cuts through the noise without compromising integrity.
In truth, our expansion into heritage wasn’t part of the original plan, but a happy accident. A year into ALL Creative’s journey, I sought a creative partner with strong healthcare experience and found Jonathan Burr, a consummate professional who respected craft but understood the power of bold creativity. Unusually, his portfolio balanced both medcomms and destination branding, giving us a unique edge in both worlds.
Six years ago, we cemented our reputation in both sectors. That year, we won the Perrigo account that continues to this day and which has led to some of our strongest consumer and healthcare professional branding work. At the same time, we delivered one of the largest interpretation projects for our client, Historic Royal Palaces.
At the grand unveiling of the reimagining of Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland, a project that my team, including Jon and Will Garwood, had toiled on for several years prior, we had the thrill of meeting the now Queen Camilla.
And perhaps that moment encapsulates the biggest difference between health and heritage. In health, our work is often like a quiet royal decree. Issued with great care, precision, and intent, yet unseen by the public as it takes effect behind closed doors. Whether realising a new brand, a relaunch or a campaign, the work takes months of diligence, often released without spectacle, and left to ripple through the world, with every hope it will make a commercial impact.
Heritage communications, on the other hand, is more like a royal coronation: public, celebratory, steeped in tradition and ceremony. When we complete a project for a heritage site, there’s a grand unveiling, an event, a moment of recognition where the story we’ve helped shape is put on display. There’s an opportunity to see how visitors interact with the work, to hear their responses, to be part of something tangible.
Both demand patience, consideration, and deep respect for their audiences. One unfolds quietly behind the scenes, the other under the gaze of history itself.
We’re privileged to work in both fields, blending the precision of science in healthcare with the storytelling magic of heritage. And we wouldn’t have it any other way.
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