How does someone go from a PR apprentice to an award-winning account director, in just eight years?

For Maddi O'Niell, account director at Bloxham — who took home The PRmoment Awards’ North trophy for Young Professional of the Year 2025 — it has been an “interesting ride”.

Starting at Bloxham in 2018 as a digital marketing apprentice, O'Niell completed her studies a year earlier than planned, and officially joined the PR team as a junior account executive in 2019.

She now manages 40% of the monthly client revenue, and was instrumental in developing its travel division, which she began working on during the pandemic.

“It started back in 2020 when we got our first travel client running river cruises down the River Severn,” explains O’Niell.

“I absolutely loved it. It was new to me, and the agency, and I was able to build a great case study. It has been crazy and the fastest growing area of the business, [and also] and its supports our main stuff of fashion and lifestyle. They all fit really nicely together.”

She revealed that the main bulk of her award entry was examples of her work with Gloucestershire-based luxury hotel Calcott and Spa, for whom she secured exclusive reviews from Condé Nast Traveller, The Telegraph, Glamour and also secured a placement on the Vogue Global Spa Guide.

O’Niell’s award win was helped by her drive to boost Bloxham’s travel division, and generating over £170,000 in revenue for the agency, which the awards judges commended as an “outstanding contribution” to the business.

But, by her own admission, O’Niell has not been one to shout about her success.

“My colleague [associate director] Vicky Ryan suggested I apply for it, and I can remember looking at the entry and thinking ‘oh gosh what have you signed me up for’.

“I’m not an avid LinkedIn user. I don't really promote anything I do workwise, so it was quite humbling going back through it [my past work] and picking out the best bits.”

She says the process of entering, and eventually winning has boosted her confidence.

“I can remember sitting down with [founder] Kaylie Bloxham and picking out bits that were really cream of the crop for this entry. It’s really nice to be able to reflect on everything you’ve done. It took me a minute to sit back and realise that I should be really proud of what I’ve done here.

“It's so amazing to be able to say that I am now award winning, and I think it does cement authority. I feel like it's given me that confidence to back myself and say I do know what I'm talking about, so I can deliver with more confidence.”

O'Neill's award win was not just a first for her, but also Bloxham as an agency. She explained that when her name was called, she was happy to share her moment with the team as she said it is “everyone at Bloxham’s” win too.

When asked what her advice is to other PR apprentices that may read this and strive to be an account director, O’Niell imparts: “Get stuck in as much as you can. Keep volunteering to try new things and make sure you’re putting yourself forward to help, whether it's in your role remit or not.”