Goho Turns 4
We bloody did it. We made it to 4. And we didn’t just make it. We frickin’ nailed it!
After a few years of absolute chaos. We seem to be on a steady upward trajectory in terms of revenue, profit, number (and size) of clients and also team members. We’re no longer in the little league guys. Say hello to Goho 4.0 - the upgraded, sexier, sassier version of the boutique Comms agency you’ve come to know and love.
Time is going so quickly though, how are we almost to Easter already?
Last year was an absolute whirlwind. We delivered upwards of 50 events, not just in London but across the U.K. and indeed the globe. We were shortlisted for two awards (we didn't win either of them but are confident for this year). We did PR for Guy Ritchie’s pub, went to hundreds of 1Rebel classes together, rocked it at Brew//LDN, whisked clients off to a VIP experience at Isle of Wight Festival, oh, and I got married. (Which was by far the hardest event to plan and manage).
We levelled up our offerings, I’m still buzzing we won OFGEM from a massive international agency, but we also signed fantastic international clients such as Tootbus, DRW, Tattoodo and Gravitas.
We also managed to deliver on our objective of supporting businesses with less funds available in a bid to level up the playing field and help elevate businesses from different backgrounds (I call this Project Anti Pale & Stale - PAPS).
Some highlights of which is ETC, a charity that educates young women in East Africa. Did you know that a man typically puts only 30 to 40% of his earnings into their families, whereas a woman will plough a staggering 90% percent in. Educating and empowering these women to be able to work and earn money for their families does more than just equip individuals, it helps entire communities.
Etan Rum is another brand I adore working with. 5 sisters from Cameroon started a rum brand inspired by their roots in West Africa. As delicious in taste as it is in looks (the bottle is banging) we’ve just started working together and I can’t wait to see the journey we end up on.
Out and Wild is a festival set up by Polly Shute and Becky French is the UK's first wellness festival designed specifically for queer, questioning, and curious women and non-binary individuals. We’ve managed to secure some top quality press coverage for the event, and are really looking forward to attending.
But we didn’t just look after clients. We looked after the team too.
We grew our turnover by almost 100% year on year. And our profits by over 1000% but did I get greedy, no! I put my money where my mouth is and invested in the team.
All staff received not one, but two pay rises to help them manage the cost of living crisis and National Insurance increase. We revised our benefits package, so starting in the new financial year, everyone will get an increased holiday allowance, volunteering allowance, digital nomad pass, 24/7/365 assistance programme through Lifeworks, 1Rebel classes, quarterly massage, Pawternity leave and lots, lots more.
We spent over £15,000 on training, coaching and development. And invested in new softwares and processes to help support the team to be more productive and efficient.
Liv, Mike, Mari, Emma and Truffle have all continued to work their socks off, and we couldn’t have grown as much as we have without the support and hard work of our Non-Exec Director Al Williams.
We’ve hired some absolute superstars to help us on our merry way. Jess, Jon, Adriana, Ayesha, Saffron and Tracey all joined us this year. We’re also still recruiting in case you know anyone who would be a good fit or just fancy getting onboard this absolute wonder bus yourself.
We’re off on our annual retreat in April, which will be overseas for the first time. We’re whisking the team off to Riviera Maya in Mexico for some strategy work, team building, and sunshine. Follow our socials and blogs if you want to hear more about that.
Bottom line is we are smashing it. Sure, there are some hard times, we do sometimes have difficult clients, some people do refuse to pay us on time, cash flow is sometimes tough, hiring amazing talent is even tougher, and it’s bloody hard to make sure I’m looking after my own well-being when I’ve also got an entire team of people to look out for. I’ve been working 7 days a week for the past month in an attempt to lessen workload and stress on the team. But that’s not sustainable. Please send any ideas for a solution for this on a postcard.
We’ve got some really exciting developments on the horizon though. Our strategy is bang on. We’ve got an amazing senior hire joining us in Q3. We’re working on events across the globe, we’re on a journey. But it’s a bloody brilliant one and I wouldn’t change it for the world.