Gascoyne Estates bolsters leadership team with appointment of Marketing and Communications Director
Saskia Jiggens has been appointed to lead brand, place and communications strategies across the Gascoyne Estates portfolio, including Hatfield, London and Cranborne. Jiggens has a remit to unlock opportunities, drive transformational growth, build audiences and partnerships, and strengthen engagement with local communities.
Her appointment follows recent senior hires, including James Rayner as Estate Director at Hatfield Park and David Tod as Director of Visitor Operations.
Educated at The Courtauld Institute of Art, Jiggens has built her career around the relationship between culture, community and commerce. She joins from Criterion Capital, where she was Group Director of Communications, External Affairs & Marketing, with a remit across a £6bn+ AUM real estate business spanning commercial, residential, hospitality, culture and philanthropy.
A consistent thread through her career has been spotting unrealised potential in places and assets – understanding what makes them distinctive, then finding new audiences, uses and commercial possibilities.
Previously, she led communications and partnerships for The Knightsbridge Partnership and The King’s Road Partnership, working across more than 800 central London businesses, property owners and stakeholders. Earlier, as Head of Communications for Kensington + Chelsea Art Week and its public art trail, she directed west London’s first public poetry initiative.
Jorge Mendonça, Chief Executive Officer, Gascoyne Estates, said: “Saskia is someone who assesses a place and sees the possibilities. She is interested in the bigger questions: what makes a place work, what might it become and where is the opportunity?
That instinct is valuable to Gascoyne. We are custodians of extraordinary places, but stewardship cannot be static. Our responsibility is to hand these places on stronger than we found them – commercially successful, relevant to the people around them and equipped for the future.
Saskia brings commercial judgement, imagination and a strong understanding of culture and place. She understands that heritage and progress, and commercial success and social value, support one another. I am delighted to welcome her to Gascoyne.”
Saskia Jiggens, Marketing and Communications Director, Gascoyne Estates, said: “What drew me to Gascoyne was the combination of history and ambition. There is an extraordinary legacy here and a real drive to see it prosper. I believe heritage should give you the confidence to innovate.
The breadth of the business is part of what makes the opportunity so compelling. There are very few roles that can take you from regenerative farming projects in Dorset to antique shops in London’s Theatreland. I love that range – and the cultural contemplation each place deserves.
The most interesting growth reaches well beyond financial return. It creates opportunities for enterprise, gives people new reasons to visit, stay and return, and benefits communities. Hatfield, London and Cranborne have their own identities. Their individual character is a strength, and something I’m passionate about championing.”
