David didn’t found the first agency he started running, and in his own words, he inherited quite the mess. But if failure breeds success he’s the proof. He’s just completed a successful M&A and grown his agency - https://www.afterdigital.co.uk/l - to run with a recurring revenue rate of 70%. We had such a load of fun recording this conversation because David is as funny as he is eloquent about all things business. We cover a lot of topics in this episode, including the risks and successes of niching into a sector, international growth, creating a people-first culture, the loss of a co-Director, mental health, and office dog Noodle the Golden Doodle! Jump onto the website to learn more about https://www.afterdigital.co.uk/ Read all about the merger betweenhttps://www.afterdigital.co.uk/insights-and-updates/peppered-and-after-digital-merge, announced just after we recorded this episode back in April.

Kelly Molson and I would almost certainly be best mates if we didn't live 500+ miles apart. I’ve not met someone I’ve clicked and resonated with so quickly, in a very long time. Kelly is the Founder of https://www.rubbercheese.com/, a celebrated Digital Agency based in Cambridge, Director of Ava Lily Property, the author of https://avalilyproperty.com/ebook/ and also runs a wildly successful podcast called https://www.skipthequeue.fm/episodes. We met at an event over 3 years ago, when she delivered one of the most profound, honest and raw talks I’ve ever listened to. She stood up and spoke about leadership and reccurent baby loss, and the ways you can keep on going, whilst experiencing the absolute worst. This is one of my favourite ever episodes because Kelly has this infectious energy. Despite covering some tough topics, she's funny, wise, extremely open, and offers a load of important takeaways - about leading, about self-care, about having a good plan B. If you’re impacted by anything we discuss today, Kelly was supported by https://petalscharity.org/and has shared her https://petalscharity.org/project/kelly/ https://twinstrust.org/bereavement.html(Formally TAMBA) were also highly supportive and recommended by Kelly, if you’re in a similar position. Why not grab a copy of https://avalilyproperty.com/ebook/, a collection of advice, tips and real life stories from the country's best interior designers and developers. If you have a passion for interiors, are looking to improve your design skills or are a property developer that wants to design better homes for people, then this is the book for you. And even better, this ebook is available to purchase as a donation with all the money going to Petals Charity. 100% of the donation will go to Petals Charity, a specialist provider of counselling for parents after baby loss, a life changing charity who’ve supported Kelly and her husband Lee, many times.

Eleanor Tucker is author of https://geni.us/ThanksforSharing, on the advisory board of the https://www.sharingeconomyuk.com/ and a http://www.eleanortucker.co.uk/. We met back in 2019 when https://www.primate.co.uk was hunting for a like-minded agency to share our office space, we connected and have known one another ever since. However, it wasn’t until well after Lockdown that I heard about Elle’s terrifying start to 2020. She’s not shared this story widely, in truth even I didn’t know it all until this chat, and I feel very privileged that she chose to share it with me on the pod. This chat is a stark reminder that we should all know the signs and symptoms of https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sepsis/, know what it actually is, and to trust your gut if someone you know seems unusually unwell. Elle - given she's having this chat! - survived and the experience spurred her on to write her wildly successful book! You’re going to want to read her incredibly enlightening and very funny book - https://geni.us/ThanksforSharing. If you've been affected by Sepsis, https://sepsistrust.org/ are here to help. They educate, support survivors, improve public awareness and save lives.

Ryan is the founder of https://wearejago.com/, and we connected during Covid Lockdown no 1, back when we were all trapped at home. He’s been in business a long time, but 4 years ago he pivoted into personal branding and Jago is now the world’s only B-Corp certified personal branding agency! However, he’s had huge life challenges to scale whilst growing the business. Even I didn’t know quite the extent of Ryan’s terrifying ordeal with his two oldest children. His little girl Grace had such an impact on this world, that her Consultant quit his job after saving her life! It’s an incredible, terrifying, yet life affirming story. Ryan discusses this ‘slap around the face’ moment, changing his business, how you switch direction and make it successful. He also describes becoming a B-Corp and all that incorporates. Why not grab a copy of https://amzn.eu/d/cb42gtS, and learn more about Grace’s story. Read Ryan’s https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2022/12/19/how-to-build-an-authentic-personal-brand-with-purpose/ for more on building an authentic personal brand - Ready to explore personal branding properly? https://wearejago.com/

For someone who never wanted to run an agency, Ian McAteer has made quite the career out of it as Founder and Chairman of The Union, Scotland’s longest running independent creative agency. Creeping close to their 30th birthday, The Union have watched and traversed an incredible change in the industry and technology, they’ve layered new services into the business, grown, challenged the market, and currently employ 85 staff. They’ve weathered recessions, crises, the loss of a Director and more. Despite this, Ian says he doesn’t feel the business is successful - sound strange? I thought so too! But his insight into why, and the way this mindset drives him as a Chairman is enlightening. We cover all sorts of challenges, and that one time he was nearly arrested at the office… Why not learn more about https://union.co.uk/and each of its different arms. Read more about Ian's thoughts on https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/riding-high-april-shot-down-may-ian-mcateer/about the granny and her https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/onion-how-almost-ended-tears-ian-mcateer/ A celebration of the life of https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/simon-scott-ian-mcateer/ The obituary for https://www.union.co.uk/our-news/kyle-hardie/, the Union's MD.

After buying out her co-founder in 2020, Jane was successfully running a business independently, continuing to collect fantastic clients, deliver brilliant work and helping the agency punch way above its weight. Until, in November 2021, Jane fainted at home and then found herself taking big decisions about her future, and that of Punk. In this episode we discuss mental and physical health, cancer, leadership, fear, healing and more. Jane Strachan is Founder of Punk, a boutique creative agency based in Edinburgh. They've worked with clients like Whyte and Mackay, Dying with Dignity, Edinburgh Gin and Deans. Jane has been supported by https://www.thebraintumourcharity.org/ As a thank you for all their help, Jane's brother is running the Great North Run on 10th September this year, https://tinyurl.com/8vbw8a6x If you're interested in learning more about https://brightsignals.co.uk/

This is the very first episode of About This Storm, and it's the context episode. On this pod I welcome my co-Managing Partner Gordon McLachlan, he is one of the original Founders of Primate and a good friend. You should know we're always very honest, a bit dark, and a bit blunt! But it's the backbone of our friendship. We explore why this podcast exists at all, but from his viewpoint. We discuss cancer, mental health, work-life balance, struggling as a leader and finding stoicism to manage stress and worry. Enjoy!

"One day you'll tell people About This Storm, and it'll encourage them to keep going." - About This Storm is the podcast that chats to business owners, founders, directors and leaders about running a company whilst navigating a crisis. Be it personal, emotional, financial or otherwise. It's hosted by Rebecca McIntyre-Smith, Managing Partner at Primate, cancer carer and cancer survivor. Rebecca navigated her husband’s cancer diagnosis, followed by her own, only for his cancer to return, all in the space of 4 years. At the same time, she was working with her co-directors to lead a digital agency that was all set for growth. In this podcast Rebecca speaks to incredible people leading businesses and working to keep those lights on, whilst surviving the worst things life could throw at you. But this isn’t doom and gloom, this is how to get through the otherside!