The Role
The Director of Marketing leads marketing, brand, communications, and destination-building strategy for Waterworks Food Hall. This hands-on, hospitality-focused role connects marketing directly to traffic, restaurant sales, beverage performance, private events, programming, and partnerships.
Reporting to the Director of Operations, this person owns strategy, digital channels, PR, social media, signage, restaurant communications, campaigns, and performance reporting, working cross-functionally with Operations, Events, Beverage & Hospitality, restaurant partners, agencies, and media to keep Waterworks visible, polished, and driving guest engagement.
Key Responsibilities
Marketing Strategy & Brand Storytelling
- Own the marketing strategy and integrated plans across paid, owned, earned, social, PR, digital, onsite, and partnership channels, aligned to business goals, the operating calendar, and seasonal moments.
- Build campaign plans with clear objectives, budgets, timelines, and success measures.
- Identify opportunities to grow average spend, repeat visits, event inquiries, restaurant participation, and brand awareness, connected to measurable outcomes.
- Own the Waterworks brand voice, visual identity, and guest-facing positioning as a hospitality-forward destination for food, beverage, events, and culture.
- Maintain brand consistency across web, social, signage, digital listings, and collateral; identify content gaps and storytelling opportunities.
Digital and Social Marketing
- Own website content, social media, email marketing, paid campaigns, SEO, digital listings, and Google Business Profile.
- Keep restaurant listings, hours, menus, event information, and promotions accurate across all channels.
- Direct the social media agency on strategy and content planning to grow engagement, following, and traffic.
- Review and approve all social media content, ensuring that all content is tied to current business goals and priorities.
- Monitor channel performance and relevant digital/hospitality trends; oversee public-facing review management with Operations.
- Work with Operations Manager to monitor, reply to, and manage public-facing reviews.
Public Relations and Programming
- Own relationships with photographers, media, influencers, and partners, and work with PR agency on strategy and storytelling across food, beverage, design, architecture and hospitality.
- Develop press materials, media kits, talking points, and pitches tied to business priorities.
- Coordinate media, tourism board and influencer visits and monitor coverage.
- Lead crisis communication and reputation management, escalating to leadership when required.
- Help develop high-impact activations that attract local guests, tourists, office and residential audiences, event guests, and media attention.
- Build campaign plans for key cultural moments, city-wide programs, and seasonal activations.
- Develop brand collaborations and partnerships that support traffic and sponsorship value.
- Lead marketing for events, activations, seasonal campaigns, and brand collaborations that attract local guests, tourists, and media attention.
- Partner with Operations and Events to ensure programs are marketable, operationally realistic, and brand-aligned.
Event Marketing and Sales Support
- Partner with Private Events team to position Waterworks as a destination for private events and activations.
- Maintain event sales decks, photography, website listings, and promotional materials; co-own an organized event photography inventory.
- Clearly communicate venue capabilities, capacities, bar offerings, restaurant participation, seasonal opportunities, packages, and ideal uses.
- Build restaurant visibility through coordinated storytelling and building-wide initiatives.
- Own communication with restaurant and bar partners on participation opportunities, deadlines, and campaign requirements; track participation and surface stories that strengthen visibility and sales.
On-Site Branding & Design
- Own guest-facing communication across the property, including signage, wayfinding, hours, directories, and printed collateral.
- Keep on-site branding polished, current, and aligned with brand standards.
- Maintain a calendar for seasonal updates, launches, and major initiatives.
- Partner with Operations to close communication gaps affecting wayfinding, restaurant visibility, and guest flow.
Restaurant Marketing & Tenant Communication
- Support with the onboarding of new restaurants and hospitality partners, ensuring they operate in line with Waterworks brand standards.
- Build restaurant visibility through coordinated storytelling and building-wide initiatives.
- Own communication with restaurant and bar partners on programming opportunities, deadlines, and campaign requirements.
- Create simple processes for restaurant participation in promotions, events, and seasonal programs; track participation and surface stories, menu items, and offers that strengthen visibility and sales.
Budget Management & Reporting
- Manage spend against the approved marketing budget; recommend investment across paid media, PR, social, content, signage, and programming.
- Track spend, flag variances, and bring forward clear recommendations; manage agency and partner scopes, deliverables, and performance.
- Build reporting that connects marketing activity to traffic, sales, engagement, and ROI; provide regular insights and recommendations.
- Monitor competitor activity and market trends to inform budget allocation and strategy.
Leadership & Collaboration
- Work cross-functionally with Operations, Events, Beverage & Hospitality, restaurant partners, agencies, and leadership.
- Lead marketing meetings, campaign planning, creative reviews, and partner check-ins.
- Bring forward recommendations and connect decisions to guest experience, revenue growth, innovation, and brand impact.
- Build a culture of creativity, accountability, and hospitality within the marketing function.
Qualifications
Required
- 8+ years in marketing, including 3+ in a leadership role.
- Experience in hospitality, F&B, events, tourism, retail, placemaking, or mixed-use real estate.
- Proven track record building strategies that drive traffic, engagement, revenue, and brand awareness.
- Strong digital marketing skills: social, website, SEO, email, paid, CRM, analytics/reporting.
- Excellent written, verbal, and visual storytelling skills.
- Experience managing PR, media, influencers, agencies, and external partners.
- Strong project management and ability to juggle multiple campaigns and stakeholders.
- Sound judgment in public-facing, time-sensitive communication.\
- Comfortable working onsite in a fast-paced hospitality environment.
Preferred
- Bachelor's degree in marketing, communications, PR, hospitality, or business.\
- Experience marketing a food hall, restaurant group, hotel, venue, or mixed-use property.
- Experience with programming, activations, sponsorships, and community partnerships.
- Experience supporting private-event sales through digital channels and lead-gen campaigns.
- Experience managing budgets, agency scopes, and campaign ROI reporting.
- Strong knowledge of Toronto's food, beverage, hospitality, and culture scene.
