No task was too much trouble and they all did everything with a smile. I gave all four their first jobs and they have gone on to have incredible careers.
If you want to work at a company, my advice would be to research them and the industry, so you are as knowledgeable as possible and most importantly, understand the media landscape. I’m shocked how many people I meet in the communications industry who are not on social media. Take every opportunity that you can, listen, observe, ask questions and make yourself memorable. Most importantly, smile.
Every role I’ve had has contributed to my development both personally and professionally. From the grounding that I had in fashion PR and luxury brands at Aurelia, to working on global consumer brands such as P&G, Disney, Whiskas and Pedigree at Ketchum. Then, having a first taste of digital sitting within the consumer tech team at Hill and Knowlton working brands such as Dating Direct and Intel, to overseeing the international PR strategy and market launches for my-wardrobe.com and later working for Harrods. Each role has massively broadened my knowledge, my network and skills as a PR.
I couldn’t have been prouder to head up the PR at Harrods. It’s such an iconic brand and a British institution loved the world over. Everyone has a story about Harrods, so to be able to work with the team, to continue to build a brand loved and respected by so many was an incredible opportunity.
Launching your own company can be daunting and, depending on your business, markets can be crowded so you need to stand out if you want to succeed. You need to understand the opportunity, your target market and the risks involved with everything you do. We took a risk leaving our jobs and launching Aisle 8, but we’ve never looked back.
I left Harrods because as the PR and media landscape changed, I could see a gap was forming for a communications agency that bridged the gap between marketing and PR. Traditional PR agencies were creating digital departments without firsthand experience of working for e-tailers and marketing agencies were offering PR without the established relationships. We knew we could bridge the gap where the lines have now blurred between the various channels. Today, it’s about creating a digital conversation supported by traditional PR and customer engagement and we knew we could create a team of experts to offer a unique 360 approach.
I had been thinking about setting up on my own for a while but it was only when I was given an incredible opportunity to work with my former mentor and friend Sarah Curran on online retailer veryexclusive.co.uk, that I decided to take the plunge. I just couldn’t find an excuse not to do it, especially after I decided to do it in partnership with [former head of press at Whistles] Virginia [Norris]. It was one of those ‘now or never’ moments.
It’s been a whirlwind since leaving the comfort of my role at Harrods. We’ve been really privileged to be working with some of the world’s most innovative and leading brands and have so many exciting campaigns and events launching. We recently moved into our new office in Shoreditch and look forward to continuing to build our team too.
I didn’t really know what I was doing in the first few weeks of setting up Aisle 8 we but had a lot of advice from friends who had their own businesses. Having the opportunity to do this with such an amazing business partner like Virginia has absolutely transformed the experience for me. We are constantly learning together and going through the challenges and excitement as a team. I feel like we have been through and learnt so much in such a short space of time from designing our branding, website and logo to writing our business plan, choosing a name, looking at offices, structuring the team and working through accounts and projections.
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I’ve learnt so much over the past six months about running a business; I don’t quite know where to start. First things first, the numbers aren’t so hard and are actually one of the most exciting bits of running a business. Knowing your monthly cash flow, P&L and fee projections really inspires me and drives me on. It’s so easy to want to spend money, but creating a lean business is incredibly important in the first year to manage cash flow. It’s also important to know your weakness and limitations. That’s why I have an incredible business partner in Virginia and an exceptional team. You can’t be good at everything and when you deliver and shine as a team, it’s much more rewarding.
I’ve also learnt how managing your growth is just as important as growing your business. If you are lucky enough to grow quickly, it’s easy to want to accelerate that growth, but the wheels can easily come off. Instead, think about your long-term plan and invest in your team and build your sales or clients confidently and strategically.
And finally, it’s worth noting that in business, the future isn’t that far away. Sitting down to think about your five year plan can seem daunting and slightly crazy in the first few months but these are the building blocks for your business. We appointed Management Consultant Tiffany Newell to work with us on the development of our brand and business and we have learned so much from only a few sessions.
Launching your own company can be daunting and, depending on your business, markets can be crowded so you need to stand out if you want to succeed. You need to understand the opportunity, your target market and the risks involved with everything you do. We took a risk leaving our jobs and launching Aisle 8, but we’ve never looked back.
The support from the industry has been amazing and I am still really humbled by the lengths people have gone to help. I still pinch myself to think how privileged we are to work with such incredible clients at such an early stage in the development of the business. As soon as I announced that I was leaving Harrods, I was approached by a number of brands, many of which I already had relationships with, along with others I was introduced to. Within a month of leaving we were managing the global communications for the launch of One For The Boys, the male Cancer charity founded by Sofia Davis and chaired by Samuel L Jackson at the Natural History Museum.
Sarah Curran is not only a mentor but also a very close friend and is someone who has encouraged and shaped my career. She has always believed in me and even during the most challenging moments, she gives me the confidence to succeed.
You never realize at the time but looking back now, I can see that everything in my life has happened for a reason. Every role, both in agency and in-house, has shaped this new chapter and has given me the skills and confidence to do this. I’ve had many mentors along the way, with one particularly special mentor, the founder of my-wardrobe.com and now managing director of veryexclusive.co.uk, Sarah Curran, who has given me opportunities that I will never forget. She is not only a mentor but also a very close friend and is someone who has encouraged and shaped my career. She has always believed in me and even during the most challenging moments, she gives me the confidence to succeed.
When you look around at female business owners right now, they are so incredibly inspiring and creative. There is also a sense of collaboration, particularly in our digital fashion industry. As women, we often lead on emotion and there is nothing wrong with that as actually we understand the emotion involved in consumer behaviour and purchase decisions, which are key drivers in business.
There’s honestly no such thing as a normal day for me. Every day is very different. I get check my emails and social media channels as soon as I get up while making my morning coffee. I start firing off emails as soon as I’m out of the door, which is slightly dangerous as I’ve walked into numerous lamp posts typing and walking. By the time I have reached the office I have already been working for an hour in transit and have managed to get so much done. During the day I might meet with clients and editors or I’m based in the office working on proposals and media campaigns. I usually touch in with our accountant; whatsapp Ginnie about 45 times a day; catch up on emails and work on business admin before driving to spinning and then to yoga, catching up on emails before falling into bed at 1am.
Whatsapp has changed the way I communicate with my clients. It’s so quick and efficient, particularly if I’m supplying quotes to the media but when it comes to communicating with my team, it’s so important to pick up the phone. I know that sounds like simple stuff, but you can waste so much time emailing when you could just say something verbally.
Whether you’re managing a team or setting up on your own, you have to create an environment that is inspiring, creative, and dynamic and where there is trust and loyalty among the team. I learnt that at Ketchum and I’ve never forgotten it. Our team is the heart of Aisle 8 – they make us who and what we are. Each of our team’s growth and career development is extremely important to us, but so is the culture and to enjoy coming into work every day. Part of our vision for Aisle 8 was to create a business where the team loved every minute of the day – their fellow team members, the office environment, the clients we work on and the campaigns we develop and deliver.
Finding time for yourself is so important – my weekends are my own. I will always check my emails but that really is about it. My weekends are my time for my friends and family. I will always put time aside in the evenings to go to the gym, spinning and yoga but I do find myself on my mobile on the running machine multi-tasking. My hot room yoga is the ultimate relaxation – 90 minutes of no mobile and absolutely no communication.
Without doubt, my mistakes and the challenging experiences are the ones I’ve learnt from. No one learns from being brilliant and praised everyday. Those mistakes give you perspective and you learn why to do things differently. I always say that to our team. No one is perfect and you’re going to make mistakes but then you learn from them and know how to do things differently in future. I’ve made so many mistakes, some of which felt catastrophic at the time but wow, did I learn from them. Some of them have shaped how I approach decisions and situations now.
The best piece of advice I wish someone had given me is that someone will always catch you if you fall. Everyone has bad days or challenges thrown at them but I know now that you are never on your own and someone will always help you, whether it’s a peer, a friend or family.
This interview has been edited and condensed. Images by Paul Whitfield for The Lifestyle Edit.