rosie davies and milo the maltese
Starting your own business is scary business, but Rosie seems to have nailed it!
Words and pictures: Simon Glazin
There are those people you meet when everything about them is infectious: their personality, their laugh, their enthusiasm, their work ethic. Rosie is one of those people. After our shoot (at her oh-so-lovely South London home), I walked to my car thinking of a new business I could set up, thanks to Rosie's overt passion for running her own, and all the success she has enjoyed with her PR agency, The London Fashion Agency.
Taking an age-old industry and bringing it bang up to date, LFA aims to help young and emerging brands (fashion, accessories and lifestyle) gain exposure in the media - be it through traditional print or digital and social, with a kind of pay as you go PR service model. Anything from press release packages to blogger outreach programmes are on the menu, with the PR monthly retainer option being the most popular.
Rosie spent many years working for small brands, which is where she discovered her preference of those over massive establishments, and her talent for turning them into press-worthy businesses. So much so that LFA has been a finalist for Drapers Independent Agency of the Year, nominated for Creative Agency of the Year, and Rosie won Rosie won Great British Creative Industries Entrepreneur of the Year in 2016. All this in just over three short years. It's testament to her hard work, the product she offers and her love for the industry.
Milo the Maltese shares Rosie's house with her boyfriend and cat, Bruce. He is the star of the show, both at home and in the office. He even has a spot on the LFA site! He's got a great personality, just like his mum, and sported a cute top knot for the shoot. Scroll down to read more about these two (or three), hear more about LFA, and Rosie's thoughts on the ever-changing industry...
On life with Milo: It's amazing... He’s a funny little man with real personality. First thing I do when I wake up in the morning is check how he is (he sleeps in his bed next to ours). He’s my little fluffy companion. He’s very much part of our company – he’s even on the website as our company chairman! People call up and ask how Milo is and when I go to meetings, clients ask me to bring him. He breaks that awkward silence when you walk into a room. I grew up with dogs, lots of black Labradors so I got Milo as soon as I could.
On work: I am founder of The London Fashion Agency – The UK’s first affordable PR agency for independent brands. We get brilliant brands with great products into magazines. I love that you can make a real difference to a brand’s exposure.
I studied textiles at uni and stumbled upon PR through an internship. The designer gave me a pile of magazines and asked if I would call them to pitch their products into the features. I loved the excitement. As I did more I realised that no one was catering for small businesses. I felt if I remodelled the way PR was done then we could at an affordable cost. Five years later, we’re still here and that designer I interned with first, is still our client today.
On the changing industry: No one answers their phone anymore! It has changed a lot. I see brands gaining real traction through their social platforms in terms of magazine coverage. It’s wonderful to see these brands with teams as small as two or three selling and gaining the coverage they deserve because their Instagram is great.
On career plan B: Something with animals… No joke! My first ever job was dog walking at a kennels when I was 14 for £2 per hour.
On her daily routine: I usually wake up between 6.30 and 7am. I live in Catford so drive to our office in Brixton. Milo and I usually stop at Brockwell Park or Dulwich Park depending on whether I want a coffee.
I’m usually at the office by 8/ 8.30am and have an hour to plan the day and respond to emails. We start at 9.30am and usually we sit down as a team and discuss what needs to be done that day.
I usually have meetings with clients in the morning. Milo is in the office with us all day. One of the team takes him out for a little walk at lunch time or sometimes him and I go to a local dog-friendly café for some lunch.
In the afternoon I get through the tasks on my to-do list which usually involve social media, writing proposals and business development and we head home about 6.30pm if I am not going out for dinner after work.
On career advice: Take EVERY opportunity that comes your way, put yourself in situations that could bring luck and work over and beyond what people expect of you. One day it will pay off!
"I love his relationship with our cat bruce. they really do love each other!"
On her favourite Milo 'tail': I have one about him nipping a delivery man and the police coming to access the ‘dangerous dog’…. I’ll save that for another day but all I will say is they loved his top knot.
I love his relationship with our cat Bruce. They really do love each other. When we got Bruce I was a little worried as Milo is a jealous only child but he curls up with him, they play together and go out in the garden together. They even have an Instagram @miloandbruce.
On what breed of dog she'd be: I asked the girls about this one, they said I’d be a Whippet because I move quickly. I’d like to be a black Labrador – loyal, friendly and hard-working.
One thing people should know about you: I’m incapable of keeping plants alive.
