Brand Development Placement - Corporate Food & Drinks Team EMEA 2026

Job Description

We are thrilled to share this fantastic opportunity for a student to join Food & Drink Brand & Retail Operations (EMEA) on a 12-month placement.

From day one, you will be fully integrated into Team Hilton. Our placements offer vast exposure and opportunities, including networking with senior executives, involvement in regional conferences and for some, international travel. Based in our Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) headquarters in Watford, you will be part of a cohort of 50 Interns and take part in regular connect meetings and feedback sessions designed to support your development. You will benefit from a subsidised restaurant, a games area and a free in-house gym.

The Opportunity

Learn quickly and contribute meaningfully in a high-performance, team-oriented environment, with this placement sitting at the core of Hilton’s value proposition: Food & Beverage, Retail, and Brand Partnerships in EMEA.

50%: Lobby Retail Strategy & Execution

• Manage retail rollouts across EMEA, ensuring timely and high-quality execution.
• Support properties in implementing automated lobby markets in line with brand standards and best practices.
• Conduct audits to optimise guest experience and operational performance.
• Carry out site visits to assess compliance and gather best practices for central sharing.
• Build and maintain reporting frameworks to track compliance.
• Use project management tools to develop a clear and effective reporting system.

50%: Scalable Brand Scheme Implementation (Restaurant & Bar Concepts)

• Support the rollout of F&B brands across DoubleTree and Hilton properties.
• Assist hotels in implementing scalable restaurant concepts across EMEA, following critical paths and sharing best practices.
• Contribute to the implementation and evaluation of F&B concepts.
• Provide constructive and critical input to support the continuous improvement of concepts.
• Collaborate with the Scalable Brands team on key initiatives.
• Support and execute central initiatives across the scalable brands portfolio.

Why choose us?

• Learning and Development: Interns have access to Hilton University to enhance their skills and contribute meaningfully to ongoing projects.
• Networking: Our interns can connect with professionals across the business, paving the way for valuable relationships.
• Feedback and Growth: Regular evaluations and feedback sessions will ensure our interns receive guidance and an opportunity to continually improve.
• Cross-Exposure: Opportunity to gain insight into other functions, as well as working on live, multi-country initiatives.
• Hilton Perks: Including our Go Hilton TM Travel Program, which provides you with access to heavily reduced hotel room rates for you, your family & friends.
• Salary & Benefits: £26,000 Gross PA & private healthcare.
• Location: EMEA Regional Headquarters, Watford. Our placements are office based with flexibility offered across some teams. This position also offers the opportunity to travel up to 20% across the EMEA region.

What are we looking for?

• A strong sense of alignment to our culture and values.
• A current Bachelor’s or Master’s student with a required 12-month year in industry placement as part of your degree.
• The ideal candidate will be working towards a degree within a hospitality discipline or have relevant experience in the hospitality or F&D industry.
• Availability to start 13th of July 2026, full-time, for a 12-month placement.
• Eligibility to work in the UK. If you are a non-UK national, without EU Settled or Pre-Settled Status then you will need to be studying at a UK university to be eligible to undertake a placement here.
• Fluency in English (speaking, reading, and writing).
• Diligent, process-oriented, and highly organised.
• Strong stakeholder management skills.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment.
• Passionate about all things F&D, with a broader interest in current industry trends.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Excellent time management and organisational skills.
• Proficient in MS Office Suite including Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook.
• Working knowledge of design skills including Photoshop is a plus.

Diversity and Inclusion

We have an incredible culture which makes Hilton a great place to work and recently ranked the #1 World's Best Workplace. We value and celebrate our team members diversities and individualism and foster a culture of belonging across our organisation. Joining Hilton will give you the opportunity to contribute to our rich culture and give back to the community. Our Team Member Resource Groups in the UK focus on Abilities, Generations, Pride, Women’s and Ethnic representation. You can find details on our Culture page.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We will ensure that qualified individuals with protected disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions of the role. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Application Process

• We receive a high volume of applications, so thank you for your patience while we carefully review each one to give it the attention it deserves.
• If your application is successful, you may be invited to complete a one-way video interview and online assessment. These help us get to know you better and assess if the placement could be a great match. Keep an eye on your inbox, and we encourage you to complete each step as soon as you can. Our EMEA Graduate Recruitment Team will be in touch to let you know the outcome.
• Good luck, we are looking forward to meeting you!

How to apply

To apply for this role and to find out more, please click on the apply button. Please note that applications may close before the application deadline, so apply early to avoid disappointment.