A research-based thinking piece

A few thoughts on Field & Flower, the market it sits in, and where I think a Marketing Executive could add real value.

I'm applying for the Marketing Executive role. Rather than just sending a CV, I spent a few days reading the brand's content, the Trustpilot reviews, the press coverage and the wider category. The point of this document isn't to tell Field & Flower how to run its marketing. The team clearly knows what it's doing.

The point is to show how I think when I look at a brand I'd love to join, what I'd already recognise as working well from day one, and where I see opportunities I'd want to test with the team in the first three months. None of it is a finished plan. All of it is a starting point for conversation.

Prepared by Alexandra Kulykova
May 2026
For Anna Carnevale
Field & Flower
Reading time 10–12 minutes
01 — What Field & Flower already does well

Before suggesting anything, the bits I think the brand is already doing brilliantly.

From spending a few days with the brand's content and 500+ customer reviews, here are six things I'd want to protect rather than touch. Coming into a new role and immediately pushing to change strong work is a fast way to break something good. These are baseline strengths I'd want to learn from first.

What I noticed 01

The farmer film series is genuinely strong

The farmer films on social and the LinkedIn page (Tom and Clare Eames at their Somerset farm raising Red Ruby Devon beef, John Malseed at Frenchbeer Farm in Dartmoor with the Christmas turkeys) are exactly the kind of cinematic, voice-led short-form that the category needs more of. The bar there is already high. I'd want to learn from how those briefs were shaped before I'd suggest any extension.

What I noticed 02

Turkey LEG UP with FareShare South West

The campaign turning unused turkey legs into FareShare donations (built by Sam Mahoney, head of food and farming) is a beautifully designed CSR moment: practical, on-brand, addresses a real waste problem, has the right partner, and ties directly to the bestselling Christmas SKU. Now in its 4th year and growing, with 1.5 tonnes of turkey legs purchased and half a tonne donated in 2025. This is mature, thoughtful marketing that doesn't feel like a press release. I'd be careful not to recommend anything that sits awkwardly alongside it.

What I noticed 03

Named, human customer service

Reviews mention Stacey, Kim and Tim by name. That's almost unheard of in subscription ecommerce and it's a true competitive moat. Customers feel like they have relationships with the team, not the brand. This is also a marketing asset waiting to be used more visibly outside 1:1 support, with the team's full consent.

What I noticed 04

The Values Range launch is reading the room

Customer reviews from late 2025 mention the new Values Range positively: premium ethics framed with better value. Given the post-inflation UK consumer mood, this is the right product move. I'd want to understand the launch arc and where there's still room to amplify it across channels rather than starting anything new.

What I noticed 05

Cooking guidance that lands

The printed cooking guides that go in the box are repeatedly praised in reviews (the bronze turkey instructions specifically). That's a moment where the brand is being genuinely useful in customers' kitchens, and reviews show it lifts repeat orders. This kind of practical content has real commercial value.

What I noticed 06

Tonal positioning is genuinely warm

The voice across the website, email and social sits in a sweet spot: more contemporary than Donald Russell, more accessible than Pipers Farm, more meat-led than Riverford or Abel & Cole. It feels like a small business, even at scale. That tonal advantage is hard-won and worth defending.

The shorthand: before I'd want to add anything, I'd want to spend time understanding why these are already strong. Most of what's below assumes those foundations stay exactly as they are.
02 — Market context

What's happening in the UK premium meat box category right now.

Six patterns I've noticed from the wider category, customer review trends and industry coverage in 2025–2026. None of this is news to the team, but it's the context I'd be operating within.

TREND 01

Premium ethics is holding, even in a tight economy

UK households are cost-aware after the inflation years, but ethical-premium food categories are holding share. The shift isn't away from premium; it's toward "good value within the premium tier". The Values Range positioning catches this exactly.

TREND 02

Subscription fatigue is real

Across the wider subscription category, customers are tired of rigid plans. Brands winning loyalty are those with the most flexible pause / skip / swap controls. F&F already has this. The marketing question is how loudly it's shouting about it to new prospects.

TREND 03

"Meet the farmer" is no longer differentiating

Pipers Farm, Eversfield, Riverford and others now do farmer content. What sets brands apart is the cinematic quality, the cadence and the storytelling craft. F&F's farmer films are already strong. Worth defending, not chasing.

TREND 04

Less meat, better meat

Flexitarian behaviour is mainstream. Customers eat meat less often but want higher quality when they do. The content angle: position F&F as the meat for the moments that matter — Sunday roast, family dinners, Christmas, gifts — not everyday volume.

TREND 05

Christmas is a brand-defining window

Across the category, premium Christmas turkey is the highest-value annual moment and a strong gateway to year-round subscription. F&F's existing Christmas content arc is strong; the operational question is how early it gets going each year.

TREND 06

Trust through transparency

Consumers in 2025–26 expect operational transparency that used to belong to manufacturing brands. F&F's traceability and welfare story is already a strength. The category challenge is communicating it across channels without it becoming category wallpaper.

03 — The customer

From reading the reviews, I'd say there are three very different people buying Field & Flower.

These are working hypotheses drawn from public review patterns, not validated personas. I'd want to test them against what the team already knows from internal data. The point isn't that the team doesn't already understand its customers. It's to show how I think about content planning when I haven't seen the data yet.

Customer type 01

The loyal foodie household

Mid-life, mid-to-high household income, often family with school-age or older kids. Cares deeply about provenance and welfare. Been a F&F customer for 2+ years and would defend the brand at a dinner party. Quietly proud of supporting British farming.

What they want from content
  • Recipe inspiration that respects their cooking confidence
  • Seasonal cooking ideas and centrepiece meals
  • Stories about the farmers they've been buying from for years
  • Honest behind-the-scenes from the F&F team
Content tone
  • Warm, familiar, peer-to-peer
  • Less explaining, more sharing
  • Treats them as part of the F&F family
  • Long-form email and Instagram feed posts
Customer type 02

The conscious newcomer

Often 30s–40s. Recently shifted away from supermarket meat after watching a documentary, reading something, or simply realising they want better. Curious but uncertain. Worried about price, worried about waste, worried about choosing the wrong cut.

What they want from content
  • Plain-English explanations: "What does free-range actually mean?"
  • "How the box works" content with no jargon
  • Confidence-building cooking guides for unfamiliar cuts
  • Reassurance that the price reflects real welfare differences
Content tone
  • Patient, kind, never preachy
  • Practical, short-form, mobile-first
  • Reels, TikTok-style how-tos, beginner-friendly recipes
  • Lots of "I was like you" stories
Customer type 03

The occasional special-moment buyer

Doesn't want a subscription. Comes to F&F for Christmas, for a birthday roast, for a dinner party centrepiece, or as a gift. Tends to return at predictable peaks: Easter, Christmas, summer BBQ, Mother's Day, Father's Day.

What they want from content
  • Specific occasion guidance: "What should I order for a family of 8?"
  • Pre-Christmas reminders and lead-times
  • Gifting content with clear pricing tiers
  • Beautiful unboxing and dinner-table imagery they can imagine
Content tone
  • Editorial, aspirational, slightly slower
  • Strong seasonal hooks and clear deadlines
  • Print-quality photography, food writing voice
  • Email-led with strong subject lines
These three groups buy from F&F for very different reasons. The risk with one calendar serving all three is that nobody feels spoken to directly. The opportunity is to plan each post or email with one specific audience in mind, rather than averaging them out.
04 — Competitive landscape

The brands Field & Flower customers actually compare it to.

I built this list from real customer comparisons in Mumsnet category threads, Trustpilot related-brand data and BBC Good Food meat box round-ups. These are the six UK-wide subscription meat brands that show up repeatedly in F&F prospect and customer conversations. Not the loudest brands in marketing terms, but the ones customers genuinely sit alongside F&F when they're choosing.

Brand Based / positioning What they own in content Where F&F has the edge
Field & Flower Somerset. Free-range British meat, sustainable fish, cheese. Flexible subscription. Named farmers (cinematic farmer films). Heritage breeds. Warm named-staff customer service. Cooking guides.
Pipers Farm Devon. Slow-grown native breeds, artisan butchery, family farm. Founder family story. Nose-to-tail butchery education. Long-form editorial blog. F&F is more accessible in tone, more flexible in subscription, broader range (fish, cheese, charcuterie).
Eversfield Organic Devon. Soil Association-certified organic beef and grocery. Organic certification. Rewilding story. Rare Breed Survival Trust partnership. F&F is more approachable, has stronger consumer brand presence, broader appeal beyond pure organic audience.
Farmison & Co Yorkshire. Heritage British breeds, butcher-direct, chef-led. Chef partnerships (Jeff Baker). Heritage breed library. Northern food storytelling. F&F has warmer customer service tone and stronger subscription flexibility. Farmison is more occasional and premium-gift led.
Riverford (meat) Devon. Organic, employee-owned. Veg-first, meat as add-on. Organic credentials. Founder voice. Big B Corp story. F&F is meat-first and substantially more flexible. Riverford customer service has slipped in recent reviews.
Donald Russell Scotland. Premium butcher-direct, frozen-led, mail-order heritage. Royal Warrant. Chef endorsements. Long heritage. F&F feels contemporary, warm and farm-led. DR feels traditional and slightly formal, with an older audience.
Dorset Meat Company Dorset. Local farm-direct, smaller nationwide delivery. Single-farm focus. Strong local story. Pasture-fed angle. F&F offers more variety (fish, cheese, charcuterie), more polished brand presentation, more cinematic content.
Worth noting

This is a starting view, not a complete map. There are several adjacent brands I'd want to study more closely with proper time: Daylesford Organic (premium full-food gifting), HG Walter (London butcher-direct with strong PR), The Ginger Pig (butcher-chain with strong food press relationships), Fosse Meadows (poultry specialist), Swaledale Butchers (Yorkshire premium), and emerging Substack-led food brands (Wylde Market and similar). Each of these takes a slice of F&F's adjacent audience in slightly different ways. Worth a deeper look as part of the first quarter.

Looking across this set, F&F sits in a strong middle space: more meat-led and flexible than Riverford, more accessible than Pipers Farm or Eversfield, more contemporary than Donald Russell, more polished than Dorset Meat Company, and warmer in customer service than Farmison. The brand's tonal advantage is real and worth defending in everything that goes out.
05 — Six opportunities I'd want to explore

Practical executions across content, email, web and PR.

Six things I'd want to test in the first 90 days. I've deliberately mixed the categories (two are content-led, one is email and CRM, one is web and conversion, one is product launch operations, one is PR) to show how I think across the whole marketing mix, not just where the camera is. Each one is sized to be testable in 4–6 weeks. All are conversation starters, not finished plans.

01
Content & Social — Retention

"What's coming in the box" — weekly Sunday Reel

A short repeating vertical Reel (60–90 seconds), published Sunday evening, featuring one rotating team member showing what's going into next week's boxes: which farmer, which cut, what to cook with it, who's it for. Quick, warm, unpolished, ritual.

Why this isn't already happening Field & Flower's social today leans toward seasonal moments and high-craft farmer films. There isn't (that I can see publicly) a repeating weekly subscriber ritual. This is a retention mechanic borrowed from subscription brands like Allplants or Mindful Chef, adapted to F&F's voice. The point isn't more content; it's predictable content that subscribers build their week around.
AudienceLoyal foodie + occasional
EffortLow (in-house, 1 hr/week)
TimelineLive in 3 weeks
What it movesSubscriber engagement
02
Content & Social — AOV driver

"Cuts you might be skipping" — short-form education

A small series of 30–60 second Reels and accompanying email pieces focused on cuts that customers tend to avoid because they're unfamiliar: oxtail, ox cheek, beef shin, mutton, kidney, lamb belly. One cut at a time, one approachable recipe, one practical reason to try it.

Why this isn't generic cooking content This isn't "Sunday roast school" (which exists across the category and would be captain obvious). This is specifically about cuts the welfare-first whole-animal model needs customers to buy, but that they currently skip. It's a basket-size and waste-reduction play dressed as cooking education. If subscribers add one "skip-cut" per month, that's measurable AOV lift without acquiring a new customer.
AudienceNewcomer + loyal foodie
EffortMedium (1 shoot day)
TimelineFirst 3 live in 6 weeks
What it movesAverage order value
03
Email & CRM — Retention

Content for the cancellation flow that's already being reviewed

From reading recent Trustpilot responses, Kim and the team have already said they're reviewing the cancellation experience and looking at improvements. That's exactly the right call. The marketing question I'd be useful on is the content layer of whatever the new flow looks like: what does the customer see, read or hear at each step, and how do we make those touchpoints feel like F&F rather than a generic "save the customer" sequence.

Why this is helping, not teaching I wouldn't come into this trying to redesign the system itself, because that's a service and operations decision the team is already working through. But once the new flow shape is agreed, every step needs words and tone: a pause confirmation email, a "would you like to try a longer interval" prompt, a gentle gifting suggestion, a follow-up note from a named team member. That's the bit I can help with from day one, with the team's lead.
AudienceAt-risk subscribers
EffortLow (copy against new flow)
TimelineWhen team has flow ready
What it movesTone in sensitive moments
04
Web & Conversion — First-time visitor

First-time-visitor landing page audit and A/B test

An honest look at what someone sees when they land on the F&F homepage for the first time, from a Google search, a press mention or a friend referral. Is the dominant message the 6-months-free-delivery promo, or the farm-first value story? Test running the value story as the lead with promo as secondary, and measure signup rate against the current setup.

Why this matters commercially First-time-visitor conversion is the single most expensive moment in a subscription business. Reviews show prospective customers hesitate on price, then convince themselves on welfare or quality. If the value-led version of the page converts even slightly better, the lift compounds across every paid and organic visitor for the rest of the year. This is conversion optimisation territory, not creative content.
AudienceFirst-time visitors
EffortLow (design + dev cycle)
TimelineTest live in 4–6 weeks
What it movesAcquisition rate
05
Marketing operations — Product launches

Seasonal product launch playbook

The Values Range launch is a good example of a good product move. The question isn't whether the launch was right; it's whether the marketing rollout was as deep as it could be. I'd build a repeatable launch playbook for future product or range launches: pre-launch email, social tease, website banner, dedicated landing page, packaging insert, PR send-out, customer review push, and post-launch performance read.

Why this matters Product launches are where marketing either compounds or leaks value. A playbook means future launches (a new fish range, a Christmas charcuterie selection, a value-tier add-on) don't depend on remembering everything every time. This is the kind of operating system that Head of Growth roles tend to ask for and is often missing in small marketing teams running fast.
AudienceAll, existing + new
EffortLow (docs + template)
TimelineDrafted m2, used m3+
What it movesLaunch consistency
06
PR — Targeted partnerships

Five UK food press and newsletter partnerships

Not a wide PR push. Five specific, ongoing relationships with publications and newsletters where F&F's audience already reads: BBC Good Food (already favourable), Olive Magazine, Delicious, The Guardian Feast, plus one or two well-chosen Substack food newsletters. Build a regular product send-out programme, recipe seeding, and quotable seasonal stories.

Why this is the right scale F&F has nominal PR (The Grocer, Observer Food Monthly accolades) but the role description explicitly mentions building press relationships and product send-outs. A focused 5-publication strategy is more manageable for an in-house executive than a wide push. It also fits a small-business budget. Each relationship can be measured: referral traffic, mentions, conversion from each title.
AudienceNewcomer + occasional
EffortLow–medium (ongoing)
TimelineFirst 3 by month 3
What it movesTop-of-funnel + referral
06 — A practical note

One thing worth flagging that doesn't show up in a CV.

What I bring

Professional production kit, already in the car

I own a full professional production kit: Sony FX / Canon R5 / BMPCC bodies, lighting, audio (microphones and recorders) and lenses. Practically, that means for content the role would normally need to brief out to a freelance crew (farm visits, in-kitchen shoots, product photography days, social Reels, behind-the-scenes content), I can do most of it in-house without renting equipment or commissioning external crew.

For a small marketing team with a content-heavy brief, that's a real budget difference. Day rates on freelance video shoots in the South West typically run between £600 and £1,200 once equipment, kit hire and a small crew are added up. Even four or five in-house shoot days a month is a meaningful saving against the equivalent external commission, while keeping content closer to the brand and faster to turn around.

It also means weather windows and last-minute "the farmer's free on Tuesday" moments are easier to catch. Freelancers need to be booked. I'm already in the car.

07 — A sketched first 90 days

What I'd want to spend my time on in the first three months.

This is genuinely a sketch, not a plan. It assumes I'd want to listen and learn first, then test small things, then build. Open to having all of it reshaped by what the Head of Growth and the wider team already know and have planned.

Month 01
01

Listen first

Sit with the customer team to understand what's actually working. Read the last twelve months of email and social analytics. Visit two farms with a notebook before a camera. Walk through the cooking guides. Build a working sense of the existing content calendar and what's planned. Get to know the brand voice from the inside, not the outside.

→ Output: a calm content audit and three quick wins.

Month 02
02

Test small

Pilot the two lowest-risk ideas. Likely candidates: the "What's coming in the box" Sunday Reel because it's quick to start and immediately useful, plus the first-time-visitor landing page A/B because it's a measurable conversion test. Measure honestly. Adjust. Bring the team in on what's working before scaling anything.

→ Output: two pilots live, one honest read-out.

Month 03
03

Build the next thing

Start production on the "Cuts you might be skipping" series and seed the first PR relationships. Begin shaping the autumn Christmas content brief alongside the team so it has time to breathe rather than getting rushed. Use what the first two pilots taught to refine the calendar.

→ Output: third piece in production, Christmas framework drafted.

08 — What I don't know yet

An honest list of things I'd need to learn from the team before any of this becomes a real plan.

Everything above is based on public information, brand content and customer reviews. There are several places where my thinking would change once I had access to the data, the team and the existing roadmap.

What I don't know about the customer

The three audience types are working hypotheses, not validated personas. F&F's actual buyer data, repeat-purchase patterns, basket sizes and lifetime value would reshape this picture significantly.

What I don't know about the calendar

The content calendar already exists and a lot is committed. My ideas would need to fit alongside what's already planned, not replace it. I'd want to spend the first weeks understanding the rhythm before suggesting changes.

What I don't know about resources

I've assumed access to a small freelance roster (designers, food stylists, copy support) where needed. With my own kit, video and photo capacity is mostly in-house, but external help still matters for design, copy and bigger shoots.

What I don't know about the email setup

The "smart pause sequence" idea assumes the current email platform supports automation with conditional flows. If the setup is simpler, that idea adapts or waits for the right tooling.

What I don't know about commercial priorities

The Head of Growth will have a clear view of which audiences matter most this year, which products carry highest margin, and which moves the business cares about most. My six ideas would re-prioritise once those are clear.

What I don't know about the team's appetite

Some ideas involve the customer or operations team showing up on camera. That's a conversation, not a marketing decision. I'd never push anyone into being on camera who doesn't want to be.

None of this is presented as a plan. It's how I think when I look at a brand I'd love to work with. The real plan would be built with the team, not for it.
09 — Some of my own work

Food, restaurants and farms I've worked with — both UK and previously in Ukraine.

A small selection of food-related projects across photo, video, social content and brand storytelling. Image placeholders mark where I'd add stills and clips during interview or follow-up. Everything below is real work I led or directed.

Three-day brand shoot for a boutique Cornwall hotel

SeeJee Ltd · UK · 2025

Photography, video and copywriting for the kitchen's seasonal menu. Worked closely with the head chef on plating, lighting, styling and the words alongside each dish. Output used across menu, social and website.

[ Image placeholder — food photography stills from the shoot ]
Direct UK food experience · most recent work

350+ recipe and product videos with a chef

Kukuruza Production · Rozetka, Tefal · 2019–2022

Led short-form recipe content, viral social videos and product-led editorial. Worked weekly with a chef on recipe development, plating and camera-ready cooking. Combined performance content with brand-tone editorial.

[ Image placeholder — stills from chef-led recipe videos and viral pieces ]
10M+ views · 10–20% sales lift · noticeable follower growth

Farm-to-product documentary for Goodvalley

Kukuruza Production · 2020–2021

Directed a documentary-style film for a pork producer covering the full production cycle, from farm through to finished product. Used for the brand's internal and B2B communications. Taught me how to film farms respectfully without making them feel like a photoshoot.

[ Image placeholder — stills from the farm-to-product documentary ]
Direct farm storytelling experience

Restaurant menu content, photo and 360° video

Kukuruza Production · 2019–2022

Food presentation content for restaurant clients including menu shots, 360° dish videos and short-form social content showcasing chef craft. Worked on plating, lighting, mood and the cinematic style of contemporary food video.

[ Image placeholder — restaurant menu photography and 360° food video stills ]
Multiple restaurant brand engagements

Content strategy for Just Smile Dental Clinic, Exeter

SeeJee Ltd · UK · 2025

Developed a content strategy, long-term content plan and brand messaging for a UK private dental clinic, working closely with the founder. While not food, this is a recent example of UK brand work translating strategy into practical implementation.

[ Image placeholder — content strategy and brand work samples ]
UK service brand experience · strategy to execution

Produtech ecommerce content marketing build

Kukuruza project · 2020–2021

Built the content marketing function from scratch for a consumer electronics ecommerce brand selling on Amazon. 100+ SKUs, 500+ SEO-focused copy pieces, full editorial standards and process design. Closest analogy to a multi-channel ecommerce content role.

[ Image placeholder — content samples and process documentation ]
Ecommerce + multi-SKU content at scale
10 — A bit about me

Who I am, briefly, and why this role in particular.

I'm a creative marketing professional with 15+ years across content, video production and brand storytelling, including more than three years working with UK clients. Originally from Ukraine, now based near Bristol.

I've spent most of my career sitting between strategy and execution, especially in food and consumer brand work. I'm hands-on with a camera, comfortable writing copy that sounds like a real person, and genuinely happy on a farm or in a kitchen with a chef.

I came across Field & Flower because the brand keeps appearing in conversations and reviews I read for fun. The work this role involves (content, social, photoshoots, email, briefing freelancers, working closely with a Head of Growth) is what I already do most weeks. The product, the values and the team are the difference.

What you can ask me about

Food brand storytelling UK content delivery Photo & video on shoots Social content (Instagram-first) Briefing freelancers Content calendars Working with chefs & farmers Brand voice & copy Press send-outs & PR

Honestly, where I'm still building

Email marketing platforms. I've used Mailchimp and HubSpot for content and basic flows, but performance-led email segmentation and A/B testing at scale isn't yet a deep area for me. I'd want to learn the F&F email setup early. Pinterest specifically: I've worked with the platform but less deeply than Instagram. Both are areas I'd close the gap on quickly.