Born and raised in Las Vegas, Joslyn Garcia is a public relations professional with nearly a decade of developing media plans and communication strategies for some of the world’s top hospitality, entertainment, lifestyle and sports brands. Today, Garcia is the Director of Communications for the FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN SILVER LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX, where she leads all publicity and communications efforts for the race.

Joslyn attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and earned a bachelor’s degree with a dual major in journalism & media studies and communication in 2012. Following graduation, she started her professional career at MGM Resorts International, opening over 30 restaurants and bars and securing top-tier media placements for the company’s acclaimed food and beverage portfolio. In 2020, Garcia joined the opening team at Resorts World Las Vegas, the first ground-up resort development on The Strip in over a decade.

During her time as Director of Public Relations, she led consumer PR campaigns, executive communications, crisis communications and emergency response plans for Las Vegas’s newest USD$4.3 billion integrated resort.

Where it all began

I feel like my path to motorsport was a little unconventional compared to others, but I was born and raised in Vegas – the home of hospitality. So naturally, my PR career was focused on hospitality. I started my career with MGM Resorts, where I primarily focused on promoting the food and beverage outlets across their collection of resort properties in Las Vegas.

During my time at MGM Resorts, I opened nearly 100 venues, from introducing brand-new resorts, nightclubs, restaurants and bars, to rebranding and refreshing existing venues. My time at MGM Resorts helped me to establish a great foundation in PR, developing the necessary skills and working with journalists across all mediums and beats – I was exposed to a little bit of everything. In late 2020, I was hired to open Resorts World Las Vegas, the first ground-up resort development on The Strip in over 10 years. There, I was responsible for both the Corporate Communications and Public Relations for the $4.3 billion integrated resort, which included promoting three Hilton hotel brands, a luxury spa, Zouk Nightclub, over 40 food and beverage outlets and the brand-new Resorts World Theatre featuring A-list headliners Carrie Underwood, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. After a few years, I was approached with the opportunity to be part of the team at Las Vegas Grand Prix. 

My in 10 words or less

Promoting the way that F1 has transformed Las Vegas.

Why what I do is important

For the most part, we help tell the story of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. I think every race is so different and they really take on the personality of the geography that they’re in. They each have their own sense of personality that makes them stand out, and I think it’s important for someone to come in and shape what that all looks like. It’s more than just saying: “We’re racing in Las Vegas” but explaining what that means, what that looks like, what that feels like, what you’re going to experience, and the different ways you can experience it. PR in general is a significant function in marketing, we help shape the story that gets people excited to want to either come in-person or watch it on TV. 

My first race

Technically, the first time I visited a circuit was the 2023 pre-season testing in Bahrain. And even though that wasn’t a race, it was the first time I saw the cars, heard them on the track, sat in the paddock, peeked into the garages, and did all the things you hear about when you’re learning about motorsport and preparing a Grand Prix. That was pretty exciting because I was learning what all the nuances were in F1, the ecosystem and how everything works. Then seeing it in Bahrain was when it all started to click and make sense. Being able to see it all after learning about it was a ‘wow’ moment. 

The first race I ever saw was in Miami – which you could say is one of the more similar races to ours. I learnt a lot about how they were activating their race and that’s when our heads started spinning with ideas and thinking certain elements were really cool or seeing if there was something we could do in a different way and make it fit for Vegas. So, it was cool to be in Miami and be inspired by what they were doing because, while preseason started to get the wheels turning in our heads, it definitely wasn’t the same as going to a race where you see the fans and activations in action. 

My most challenging moment

In general, for F1 and LVGP, it was that there truly was no playbook, and that’s because what we have to accomplish and build in Vegas – a temporary track on The Strip – is nothing like anything else, even other street races. So, I think having to learn while also having to build was challenging. But ultimately, it was really rewarding when we were able to accomplish it in the end. And after Year 1, we knew exactly what we wanted to do better and how to further improve for Year 2 because we’d lived it once. While 2023 was a challenge, I feel like it prepared us so well for the 2024 race, and now going into our third year, it’s again inspiring us to want to level-up on everything that we’ve done.

My proudest moment

I would say when the race was over in Year 1 because we’d accomplished it. I think we all shed a tear because we couldn’t believe we pulled it off and it was really rewarding. But I think the end of Year 2 was an even prouder moment because we were able to see just how much we transformed, learnt, tested and pushed ourselves to do better, and I was just really proud of our entire team and everyone that supported us along the way. 

An F1 memory I’ll never forget

There are a lot, but I think the moment the cars went on track for the very first time in Year 1 stands out. We were so tightly wound and then when the cars went on track, we just thought: “Oh my god. We did it. It’s here. It’s happening.”

How I’ve worked with SMG

It’s been great to work with SMG in a bunch of different ways. With the Media Centre, we worked really well together to create what we feel was a big improvement from Year 1 – and that all came from learning, being receptive to feedback and striving to do better.

Generally, SMG have always been super helpful, and you have a completely different perspective and understanding than what we have coming from both the promoter side and living in the US, which is great. As I mentioned, I don’t come from a motorsport background and I’m still learning a lot about the sport each day and we don’t travel around to each market, so it’s good to get the perspective of what international audiences think of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, understanding what we need to educate our audience about, or what they enjoy most that we can lean into. I think SMG has done a really good job of just guiding us to see things in a different way.

My advice to others wanting a career in motorsports

I think with careers in general it’s a lot about being in the right place at the right time. However, I am also a firm believer in if you have a goal, then build/work backwards. If you know you want to do PR or marketing or social media for motorsports, you have to get there somehow and gain experience. Look into the required skills, the tactics, the things you need to learn in order to be the best candidate at your dream job, and then take steps towards that so eventually, when the time comes, you’ll be the right person for the job.

It’s also about getting to know people, asking questions, and making yourself visible to be to the right people at the right time, whether it’s attending mixers, panels, events or just putting yourself out there on LinkedIn. I think that’s important too!