The Square Rooms #7: London Dinner - Nov '26: "Lessons from customer marketing successes and failures" with Gavin Hilton

Join us at The Square Rooms #7: London Dinner - November 2026

“Lessons from customer marketing successes and failures” (with the occasional massive cock up thrown in) with Gavin Hilton

This senior marketing leaders lunch is hosted by The Peer Space in partnership with Purple Square CX, an exclusive gathering bringing together senior marketing and customer leaders to explore how loyalty is evolving beyond points, rewards and technology platforms.

Join us for dinner on Wednesday November 11th from 6 for 7PM at L'Escargot in Central London.

Your martech deployment is already going wrong. You just haven't started it yet.

“Lessons from customer marketing successes and failures” (with the occasional massive cock up thrown in) with Gavin Hilton

Why do organisations spend millions on marketing technology, only to discover that the difficult bit had very little to do with the technology?

After more than 30 years in customer marketing, working both agency and client-side, Gavin Hilton has experienced extraordinary successes, expensive disappointments and a few disasters that could have been avoided in hindsight.

The uncomfortable truth is that many organisations embark on major martech deployments having done nowhere near enough of the thinking, planning and organisational preparation required to succeed.

They've selected the platform, agreed the budget, appointed the implementation partner and announced the transformation. So why are these programmes often so spectacularly painful?.

Drawing real life experience, Gavin shares lessons from the front line of customer marketing transformation. What works, what doesn't, what nobody mentions at the pitch stage and why some of the most consequential decisions are made before implementation even begins.

Expect uncomfortable truths, a little self-incrimination and practical advice for anyone contemplating, commissioning or currently enduring a major martech deployment.

No platforms will be harmed in the making of this presentation.

Expect to gain practical lessons from thirty years in the trenches, together with a checklist for navigating the three stages of a major martech deployment.

About the Speaker:

Gavin Hilton is an independent customer marketing strategist with more than 30 years' experience helping major brands build stronger, more profitable customer relationships.

One of the first advertising strategists to make the move into data-driven customer marketing, Gavin has spent his career at the intersection of customer insight, creativity, technology and commercial performance.

He has led strategy teams at some of the industry's most successful agencies, including RAPP and Proximity, developing and delivering major CRM programmes for brands such as Sainsbury's, Barclaycard and the NSPCC.

Having subsequently experienced life on the other side of the table as a client at Flutter, Gavin now works independently with organisations as diverse as Nestlé, TUI and Xerox, helping them translate customer ambition into programmes that actually deliver.

His experience spans the evolution of customer marketing from direct mail and database marketing to sophisticated omnichannel CRM, loyalty and AI-enabled marketing.

Along the way, he's learnt that while the technology has changed almost beyond recognition, many of the mistakes organisations make when deploying it have remained remarkably consistent.

And, having made a few himself, he's particularly well qualified to talk about them.

What to expect at The Square Rooms:
- A curated, thoughtful space, tailor made for connecting senior marketers in London
- A dedicated space at a conveniently located venue, with an intimate lunch or dinner space for up to 20
- Networking time before and after lunch or dinner
- Opportunities to share experiences, stories, and challenges at the table with peers
- A chance to learn from and interact with leading minds and thought leaders.

See you there!

This event is brought to you by The Peer Space in partnership with Purple Square, and hosted in Central London, with limited availability seats available here.

Purple Square | Beyond the Platform into Outcomes.
We help ambitious brands turn CRM, CX and Martech investment into measurable business value, loyalty, retention and growth.