Lifestory appoints Instinctif to supercharge media engagement and community-focused ethos

Lifestory, the creator of homes and communities across England, has appointed Instinctif Partners as its corporate communications firm following a competitive pitch process. The appointment comes as the firm looks to supercharge its engagement with media and clearly communicate its commitment to creating communities for all life stages.

Lifestory was formed in 2019 following the merger of established independent living specialists, PegasusLife and Renaissance Retirement with open-market housing provider Anthology. This created a business with over 2,500 homes across 50 developments around the UK, valued at more than £1.5 billion. The business is pressing forward with an ambitious growth strategy and has committed to the creation of more than 5,000 quality homes and communities over the next five years.

Underpinning Lifestory’s total focus on its customers and communities are an incredible range of amenities and support, with many communities offering a number of industry-leading benefits which include:

• Lifestory’s Homes with Heart offering aims to support grieving families with helpful practical and financial support on the resale of a deceased parent’s property. The in-house team of experts help to guide families through the sale process and also provides a six-month service charge holiday to minimise any financial impact
• Lifestory customers pay no exit fees when selling their home
• In addition to offering homes for sale and rent, Lifestory offers a ‘Choice to Buy’ option which means that should a customer purchase the Lifestory home they are renting within the first year, they will be refunded the first six months rental fees, allowing customers to experience all the benefits of the community and their new home and be satisfied that they are making the right choice by purchasing there
• Each community employs a dedicated Lifehost who acts as community lynchpin, going above and beyond to bring people together and offer support and knowledge to assist those living there

Instinctif’s brief is to showcase the Lifestory brand amongst potential customers, enhancing its commitment to creating high-quality homes and inclusive communities across the country. Comprising three regional businesses (London & South East, South & South West and Midlands and North) stand out communities across England include Anthology Hoxton Press, Pegasus Jesmond Assembly and Renaissance Marlborough.

The Instinctif Partners team led by Kaylene Oliveira, Director, Corporate & Campaigns, and supported by Jamie Till, Dulcie Keates-Miles, Emma Baxter and Margaret Agbonson, was selected due to the agency’s ability to fuse specialist real estate and financial services sector experience with consumer and digital activation.  They will work closely with the central and regional marketing teams, as well as Lifestory’s newly expanded inhouse team of digital and communications experts, to ensure an integrated communications approach.

Amber Hawkes, Group Marketing Director at Lifestory, commented: “I was impressed by Instinctif Partners’ creativity, their breadth of media contacts and their ability to offer a team of integrated experts. We look forward to working with them as we take our brand through the next stage of transformation following our 2019 merger.”

Kaylene Oliveira, Director, Corporate & Campaigns at Instinctif Partners, commented: “We are incredibly excited to be working with Lifestory. We’re passionate about briefs that seek to deliver true societal change and, with their ethos of creating inclusive communities that offer homes for all, Lifestory’s ambitions are perfectly matched with ours.  This is a brand very much in our sweet spot of PR expertise, and it perfectly complements our roster of clients which include leading property businesses, FTSE-listed corporates and a range of other fast growth challenger brands looking to improve the lives of the nation. We are looking forward to working with Amber and the wider team at Lifestory to help raise Lifestory’s profile and contribute to their success.”