Meet the Hot 30: Saleha Rahmani, Marketing Manager at The O2

Meet Saleha Rahmani, Marketing Manager at The O2 and one of our Pepper Hot 30 UK 2026 winners.

From Outlet Shopping at The O2 and its 60+ brands to more than 30 bars and restaurants, leisure experiences and over 200 shows and events every year, Saleha's role is all about showing audiences just how much there is to discover at The O2.

We caught up with Sal to talk about building an always-on influencer strategy, why TikTok has become such a powerful discovery tool, the importance of testing and learning, how online communities are increasingly moving into real life and why discoverability will be one of the biggest conversations for social teams in 2027.

What's your role at The O2 and what does your day to day look like?

I’m one of the Marketing Managers at The O2 and my main focus is growing awareness of the destination at The O2. That includes Outlet Shopping at The O2 - a two-storey shopping outlet with more than 60 brands offering up to 70% off - as well as the Entertainment District, which is home to over 30 bars and restaurants and some incredible leisure experiences.

My day-to-day role covers everything from marketing the wider destination through campaigns you might see on the London Underground, hear on the radio or come across digitally - to social and influencer activity, enhancing the customer experience, building strong relationships with our brands and understanding their priorities and helping them make the most of being part of The O2.

With The O2 hosting well over 200 shows and events a year, alongside indigo at The O2, Up at The O2 and everything else the destination has to offer, it's definitely a special and unique place to work and visit.

Where else can you go axe throwing, head on a shopping spree for less, stop for hotpot, try indoor skydiving and then climb over the roof while a superstar is performing beneath you? It’s a lot for a marketer to think about, but that’s also the fun of it.

No two days are ever the same. One week, we might be working with our brands on a retail campaign or showcasing The O2 as the go-to entertainment destination for families during the school holidays. The next, we could be exploring how to make the most of the opportunities created by a major arena show, which means really understanding that artist’s audience and what will resonate with them.

Ultimately, it’s about communicating all the reasons to visit The O2 and showing that there really is something for everyone.

What’s been your biggest win or proudest moment in your current role so far?

I’ve been working at The O2 just over seven years now, and it’s changed a whole lot in that time which has been amazing to be part of. Every single year we’ve opened new stores, restaurants and attractions, worked on campus wide events and have welcomed millions of visitors, it’s been great to experience.. From a professional perspective, getting recognition like the Pepper Award Hot 30 is also definitely up there because it was a reflection of the work over these years and is a testament to all the brilliant people I work with.

Beyond that, I'm really proud of what we’ve done to develop and refine our influencer strategy over the years. We’ve worked with such a great mix of creators who have all shared their experiences at The O2 in completely different ways. Seeing that work contribute to real business results has been amazing. Recently, Outlet Shopping at The O2 and the Entertainment District achieved sales that were 15% up on last year which was amazing to see. On the influencer front, we achieved some of our best performance metrics ever in the last quarter. It’s just a testament to how much our testing and learning has paid off and how developing our strategy has helped tell the story of everything The O2 has to offer.People have so many core memories attached to The O2, and as we continue to evolve what we offer, the creative almost writes itself because it’s rooted in so many people’s genuine moments and experiences.

Which social platforms are you seeing the most success with right now, and what do you think is driving that?

It definitely depends on the creator and the type of content, but we’ve had amazing results on TikTok because it’s such a powerful platform for awareness, discovery and entertainment which is at the heart of what The O2 is all about. Instagram is also great for us, but overall it’s about making sure creators are producing content that is platform-first for them and aligns with their audience.

TikTok has been an amazing search and discovery tool for people looking for recommendations, planning a day out at The O2, or finding inspiration in London. We’ve really worked with creators to ensure they are answering those specific user queries.

What’s one piece of work you’ve been involved in recently that you’re particularly proud of?

Achieving our strongest influencer performance metrics to date last quarter was a huge milestone. It came down to the brilliant creators we collaborated with and our always-on UGC strategy, which allows us to brand build and also weave in creators around more tactical and cultural moments.

One piece of content that really stood out recently was Emma Eliza Lines’s video. She showcased a full day out and shared that, despite visiting The O2 many times before, she had never explored Outlet Shopping at The O2 - and absolutely loved it. She finished the day having a brilliant time at Rick Astley, and because she is a genuine music and concert fan, that passion really shone through.

I’ve also loved working with creators who bring completely different perspectives and creative styles. Sonia’s Illustrations captured her entire day out at The O2 with her boyfriend through her artwork - from playing padel and enjoying food to going shopping.

I’m also a fan of James B and his iconic parents, who visited for the ultimate day out. You could see the pure joy they shared throughout the content, and we received so many brilliant reactions. Many people wanted it to become a series, so it was great to see how strongly the content resonated with them. Seeing such a diverse mix of creators interpret and showcase The O2 in their own distinctive ways has been really interesting.

What’s something you’ve learnt in your current role that has changed the way you approach social?

The biggest thing I’ve learned is to trust your instincts without assuming any outcome is guaranteed and to never stop learning. As marketers, we should use our experience to identify what is likely to drive results, but we also need to avoid banking too heavily on one idea or writing another off too quickly. A strong, repeatable format can perform brilliantly, but it still needs enough flexibility for each creator to bring their own style and connect with their audience. The post you’re convinced will be a hit might underperform, while the one you’re less certain about could become your strongest. The key is to stay curious, keep testing and work with creators who genuinely align with your brand values.

I’ve also learned that social media is fundamentally collaborative - it’s all about people. Building strong relationships is vital, from our amazing team at The O2 to our brilliant brands and their marketing and store teams. These relationships help us understand their latest insights, products, launches and collections, and identify the best opportunities to bring them to life through social.

I also try to chat to everyone about social - from colleagues across the business to my Gen Z and Gen Alpha cousins and their lessons in TikTok brainrot. These conversations give me perspectives on the very different ways people use social media today. It’s no longer just a source of entertainment and endless scrolling - it’s where people discover brands, shop, plan days out, save videos that signal future intent and search for answers.

What’s exciting you most about social media at the moment?

I think it’s really interesting how audiences and creators are leaning into hyper-niche subcultures, whether that’s through Substack, long-form YouTube or TikTok communities focused on things like ‘unrotting your brain’ for example and how that’s translating into real-life events and communities.

Because of the nature of The O2, it’s been great to watch how different fan bases experience and interact with the space, both in person and online. During Ariana Grande’s shows, for example, my feed was full of fans sharing their incredible outfit videos and recreating her looks, attempting the ‘silent challenge’, showing their Outlet Shopping at The O2 finds and getting pre-show food and drinks together.

It’s amazing to see how people interact with the space to create core memories, while social allows them to document those moments, share them with one another and connect with a wider community. It relates closely to one of Pepper’s predictions about ‘social getting physical’, as online communities increasingly move into real life and that’s something we’re already seeing play out at The O2.

What’s your biggest prediction for social media in 2027?

I suppose I have to speak about AI even though everyone is! As it will continue to dominate the conversation. As we know, it has already become such a crutch for people planning days out, building vision boards and seeking personalised recommendations. Brands are no longer competing only for people’s attention on social media but also to feature in AI answers and algorithms shaping their decisions and feeds.

At the same time, the rise of AI creators, bots and automated content are making trust one of social media’s greatest challenges. People and brands alike are increasingly questioning whether a comment, creator or recommendation is real. This makes the genuine creativity, passion and relationship creators have with their communities even more valuable.

Whilst shared cultural moments still happen through traditional media, they don’t always emerge in the same way or feel as predictable as they once did. People now have endless choice, and hyper-personalised algorithms are placing us all in our own online mini worlds and realities. That makes it much harder for brands to reach large audiences through one channel or cultural moment. From an awareness perspective, brands will need to keep adapting their strategies to be multi-layered and diverse, so they can show up in these different spaces, connect with distinct communities and stay relevant across an increasingly fragmented internet.

What do you think brands and social teams will be talking about this time next year?

Discoverability will be an even bigger conversation than it is now. Social channels are search engines, and search is becoming social. Brands will spend a lot more time strategizing on how to show up organically where people are actively searching for recommendations, inspiration, and real answers and how to turn that search intent into results..

What’s one piece of advice you’d give to someone looking to build a career in social?

I think its important to have fun with it and just genuinely enjoy it and stay curious. Because the space evolves so quickly, having a natural interest means staying up-to-date won't feel like a chore; you’ll actively want to understand it and learn. That passion will naturally shine through when you're pitching ideas and shaping strategy.

Your most valuable skills will come from everyday learning: taking risks, testing ideas, and talking to people. Social is a people-focused industry, so engage with different communities to understand them. Lastly, take every opportunity you can to network and learn from others in the industry. Hearing different perspectives from people at other brands is so inspiring and will continuously fuel your own work.

We know great social is always a team effort. Are there any members of your team you’d like to give a shout-out to by name in your Hot 30 article, and what would you like to recognise them for?

For all things social, I have to start with Emme, our Marketing Executive at The O2. She’s an absolute social media master, our chief Gen Z consultant and so much more. Any influencer or social campaign that looks effortless from the outside only does so because of the huge amount of work that goes on behind the scenes to bring each idea to life.

I’d also love to shout out Ben and Natalie in the Destination Marketing team for everything they do in shaping the destination and all our campaigns and laughs along the way and feel so lucky to be part of such a great team, and The O2 Marketing and Retail teams for their amazing work. Social is completely collaborative, and everything we’ve achieved has been a team effort.

Why Saleha Made the Hot 30

Saleha’s approach to social combines a real understanding of how people discover and experience The O2 with a willingness to continually test, learn and adapt. From developing an always-on creator strategy to using TikTok as a search and discovery tool, she’s focused on making social work harder across the entire customer journey.

We were particularly interested in her perspective on the relationship between online communities and real-world experiences. Whether it’s fans sharing concert looks, creators showcasing completely different days out at The O2 or audiences using social to plan their next visit, Saleha understands how social can turn physical experiences into content, conversation and ultimately business results.

With some of The O2’s strongest influencer performance to date and a clear focus on where social is heading next, from discoverability and AI to increasingly fragmented online communities, Saleha represents exactly the kind of curious, forward-thinking approach we wanted the Hot 30 to celebrate.

You can read more about the Pepper Hot 30 UK 2026, meet the full list of winners and find out more about the initiative here.