Simon has worked in communication his entire career.
Qualifying as a journalist in the ’80s, Simon set up his own agency in 1988, aged just 22. Over the next 30 years, Simon’s business and subsequent incarnations managed the communication for clients in the retail, tourism and leisure industries across the U.K.
His primary early focus was in retail: his company won a reputation for delivering successful marketing initiatives for shopping destinations. Through the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century, his company worked with more than 100 shopping centres and retail parks across the country as well as working closely on numerous initiatives in the towns and cities where those retail destinations were based.
His agency delivered creative services and marketing solutions for a number of UNESCO world heritage sites and leading tourist attractions.
In 2007, Simon sold his agency and created the UK’s first ‘destination marketing’ team, becoming one of the UK’s earliest adopters of social media for commercial use – initially for shopping centres and then for the benefit of town and city destinations. A mentor on the Portas Pilot project, he founded MallToMobile (to support the UK’s shopping centre industry) followed by SOCIALiSTREET (demonstrating how towns and cities could best utilise digital and social media).
He and his young family moved to Scotland in 2008.
In 2012, he established Destination66 Ltd with his wife, Susan, who brought a wealth of knowledge and many years of experience in the UK’s golf and tourism industries. Together, they launched a unique service designed to support the digital and social media planning, delivery, monitoring and evaluation for ‘places’ – towns, cities, rural estates across Scotland as well as Business Improvement Districts (BID) and tourism destinations.
In 2017, Destination66 created Destination Digital Ltd.
In the same year, Simon was appointed by the Scottish Government to lead research into Scotland’s Digital Towns Programme, the findings of which were published in 2018, making recommendations for the creation of a new BID model – a Digital Improvement District – to meet the demands and expectations of towns across the country.
Destination Digital were tasked with running a demonstration project to prove their concept.
CuparNow in Fife, Scotland, was the result, creating the world’s first Digital Improvement District with a five-year term (2019-2024). As time progressed, the model was proved: ‘sustainable delivery of managed, integrated digital and social media communication and services in support of multiple audiences’.
In 2021 – post Covid and in response to evolving place-management research – Simon was instrumental in the development of a new model of digital support for rural destinations. This led to the launch of a project built on the deployment of gigabit-capable broadband that connected homes and businesses across more than 50 square miles of the Scottish Highlands.
Back in Fife, CuparNow’s five year term came to an end in 2024: the option existed for another ballot, but Destination Digital opted for a new, unique model – inviting businesses, organisations and groups to subscribe. That launched in 2025 and and builds on their successes, supporting an audience that is more than ten fold the town’s population … advocates of Cupar in every time zone across more than 135 countries.
Now the model is being expanded in response to business demand – into St Andrews and the East Neuk.
For the last 18 years, Simon has lived close to St Andrews. During that time, he has helped to establish the town’s own BID (in 2015) and has worked for a variety of businesses, advising on their use of digital communication.
Combining years, he has worked for more than a decade with the Kohler-owned Old Course Hotel, Gold Resort & Spa. The most recent period was an appointment in 2022 for a three-month contract ahead of the 150th Open – extended to two-and-a-half-years. His work saw a consolidation of social media channels to better engage and grow audiences at home and abroad as well as writing the resort’s award submissions, resulting in a series of high-profile accolades.
“I’ve known and worked with Simon Baldwin for more than a decade. His work with our resort – and the composite outlets covering the hotel, food & beverage, golf, conference & events as well as retail – has always been delivered professionally, on time and on budget. He knows and understands the unique mix of businesses and organisations not only in the town but also across our catchment. His knowledge of St Andrews has proved of great value over the years in forging collaborations with local partners and stakeholders. His connections have benefitted us, our guests and our wider community.”
Phyllis Wilkie
General Manager
Old Course Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa St Andrews
Simon has also worked with East Neuk Estates, a collection of farms and estates close to St Andrews, that includes Strathtyrum, the estate intrinsically linked with the home of golf.
In 2023, Henry Cheape of Strathtyrum reached out to Simon. He planned to row the Atlantic solo and wanted help with communication. Voluntarily, Simon ran the social media channels for PollyAnne in the World’s Toughest Row (2023-24) … a 10-month campaign that saw Henry Cheape become the fastest Scot to row the Atlantic solo, raising more than £100,000+ for his chosen charities in the process.
In addition to his work in digital media, Simon undertakes regular freelance work, most recently writing features for Coast magazine. As examples:
A lecturer in communication for US students visiting the UK as well as a commentator on media channels covering place management and more, Simon’s key work remains in advising a and helping place managers (and their key partners) on best use of available technology to support their destinations’ businesses, residents, visitors and community stakeholders.
Contact
Email: simon@destination66.co.uk
Phone / WhatsApp: 07971581966