THERE are two types of public relations practitioners.  The first is the one we all know and dread – the hip young person who does PR-by-numbers because they think it is glamorous and only requires stamina for party-going.

Then there is the second type.  This person lives for their profession, is on call 24/7, often works round the clock to get the job done, and remembers the names and faces of every person they have ever met.  This last type of PRO does not learn their trade, they are born with it. The hospitality industry is fortunate to have such a personality in their midst.  Peter Unsworth, of The PR Team based in Cape Town, is possibly one of the most professional and skilled practitioners in the art of making a client grab headlines for the right reasons.  "Public relations and image management is not a job," he says, "it's a lifestyle.  You are offering a service, but this is not a service that ends at 5pm.  No matter what time of day or day of the week, you are constantly guarding your clients' interests, providing the best possible service, and – ultimately – being honest.  Don't oversell and under-deliver, don't tell your client you can do things when you can't, don't promise something to the public that the client cannot live up to.  At the end of the day, successful marketing is all about being honest." What Pete doesn't mention, possibly because he is not aware of it himself, is that one of the secrets of his success is a genuine liking for people, an innate knack for doing and saying exactly the right thing, op-en-wakker energy, a genius for organisation, a classy outlook, and an over-the-top sense of drama.  Oh, and he dresses really well, too. The path to a successful hospitality PR firm in Cape Town had a rather surprising beginning:  Pete comes from Lancashire in England and trained as a classical dancer.  His career began in show business, and by the age of 21 he had travelled round the world twice – even visiting Antarctica! – and had spent most of his formative years on the road. "You learn a lot about the hospitality industry when you spend all your life in hotels," he says, "and it makes you very aware when a hotel is getting it right and when it isn't." A contract to open a show in Sun City in 1990 brought him to South Africa and changed his life.  He used his leisure to study public relations part time and began to help the Sun City team with marketing. “It was quite an education,” he says.  “You spend long hours on film shoots – there were always film crews at Sun City – organising everything, putting on shows at the Superbowl, dealing with people ranging from celebrities at the very top to the people who fix the lights and deliver the refreshments.” It was during this time that Pete realised that there was a gap in the market for a public relations company that specialised in the hospitality industry. “The large hotel groups all had marketing departments and millions to spend on promotions and PR,” he says.  “But not everyone has that kind of money.  This was 1994 and the hospitality industry in South Africa was still new, still coming out of sanctions.  There were many smaller companies that wanted marketing and public relations, but could not justify or afford a permanent employee or department.” Being on call to a demanding and diverse clientele has its drawbacks:  the constant travel and round-the-clock work day plays havoc with a private life.  On the upside, one is part of some incredible events. “The most challenging, I think, was Michelle Garforth’s wedding a few years ago,” says Pete.  “She wanted three elephants to walk her down the aisle….we managed it.”  He has also developed a talent for catching flying champagne flutes – an occupational hazard when young waiters bearing trays of drinks trip over hotel carpets. “My biggest thrill is opening a new hotel,” he says.  “You can get involved at grass roots, right from choosing the font for the menus to the overall atmosphere.  You get an understanding of the whole thing.  With new properties, don’t oversell.  Don’t do mere window-dressing.  If you claim to be something, then that’s what you must be.”  “There has been a change in the mentality of hospitality over the last few years,” he adds.  “It used to be that five-star luxury meant fittings and furnishings and grand appearances.  Nowadays, people are concentrating more on giving good service and on offering something unique and special to their guests.  This is a great development, because it does not always have to cost a lot of money.  Everybody has something that they can offer, some kind of differentiation, that WOW factor.  By concentrating on excellent service and providing a unique experience, anyone can become successful.”