Celia Williams

From the North of England to the Northern Netherlands

Thinking about it, I was quite literally born to work in a position as internationally-focussed as the NOM and their FDI team. I call myself a ‘7th culture baby’, because I’m the latest in a long line of immigrants in my family – I’ve got roots in Italy, Spain, Jamaica, Chile, Canada, Austria, France, Cuba… and I’m probably forgetting some more! I myself hail from the North of England, but it’s probably not surprising that at eighteen the wider world called me for some adventures outside of the UK.

That call took me to Groningen, where I studied International Communications at the Hanze University of Applied Sciences and then International Business and Management at the University of Groningen. I’ve tried to leave – I lived for six months in Milan – but the Northern Netherlands keeps drawing me back. The TopDutch region is truly a great place to live; in Groningen I’m surrounded by globally-minded locals and expats, there’s a real mix of metropolitan and villagey vibes, and it’s amazing how many cool places you can get to with a few hours on the train!

Apart from international cultures, marketing/communications has always been something intrinsic in me. Before I’d even reached primary school I was analysing TV adverts and their linguistic choices to my (bemused) grandma. At 13 I’d started my own grassroots campaign with 18,000 likes on Facebook and by 16 I’d done summer internships at 3 communications teams, including Weber Shandwick.

For me, being able to have a career that mergers all of my passions, and to be able to use my talents to give back to the Northern Netherlands – which has been so wonderful to me – is perfect. Every day I get to show the rest of the world how great it is to live and do business in the Northern Netherlands. Working at the NOM is also awesome: It’s a fun and supportive environment where there’s a lot of experienced colleagues from all sorts of backgrounds who can help you help yourself develop as a professional.”