In 2008, a Finnish businessman walked into the London PR agency where I worked. A serial entrepreneur, Jouko had started his first business aged just 16, and had sold many companies since then. He had extensive knowledge of the mobile telecoms industry – and so did I. He needed to increase brand presence for his latest startup – which tracked people’s mobile habits and behaviour so users could be pushed custom digital advertising. This might not sound groundbreaking today, but it was back in 2008, when many of us were still carrying flip-phones, smartphones were priced well above the average consumer’s budget, and SMS was still the primary communication channel. The sharing of multimedia files, and touchscreen phones, were still gaining traction.
Jouko didn’t end up hiring that agency – but when I left to start my own business, then called Hatch PR, he came back and he hired me.
My insider industry knowledge, my ability to craft strategic communications, and my ability to distill complex topics into compelling narratives meant that Xtract was a happy customer. Jouko introduced me to his extensive and successful network of other Scandinavian technologists.
Fast forward 17 years and I’m still working with many Finnish companies today that sprang from that early client relationship.
This story exemplifies how I build my companies – through sound business, good strategy, and a happy network of clients.