Getting comfortable with change; the ever-evolving Lisa May & Co.
If you’ve been following along on my journey for a little while, you’ll know that my business has changed a lot over the last two years. I started Work by Amy (which, really, was never meant to be a ‘business’) in Summer 2020, and then rebranded that business about a year later. I sat within that space for another 7 months or so, at which point I knew something had to change. The space I was occupying within my community had changed quite drastically, and I knew that I needed to put the work in to keep up with what was going on externally. It took a lot of guts, time and hard work, but eventually I said goodbye to Work by Amy and launched The Brand House. It was daunting moving away from something that finally felt comfortable and, for all intents and purposes, starting again. But, after growing into The Brand House for the last 3 months, I can now see that making those changes within my business was absolutely the best thing I could have done. I’m all for adapting and evolving to suit the direction your business is going, and if there’s anything the last few years have taught us, it’s that we need to get comfortable with change and be able to go with the ebbs and flows.
When it comes to adapting to keep up with your business, Lisa Carroll, of Lisa May & Co, is a real pro. If you’ve been following me for any length of time, you’ll likely know that I work very closely Lisa; a retail consultant, helping to bridge the gap between independent brands and the corporate world. She has a mammoth 20 years of experience, and supports retailers in staying relevant and owning their space, whilst building sustainable, manageable and successful businesses that are built to last. What started as a love of the trade and a desire to help has developed into reputable, full-service retail consultancy agency that helps to reduce the overwhelm and build thriving, stable, quality businesses. I started working with Lisa in July 2021; she was in her second year of business, and had reached a place she knew required change. We built and launched a new brand and website, which gave her some breathing room and space to grow. Little did we know, Lisa was about to enter a period of personal and professional growth which, combined with her dedication to her business, launched her into a completely new space. There was refreshed services, brand new offerings AND new faces — the business had quite literally been tipped on it’s head, and we both came to each other and said ‘what now?’.
Over the last couple of months, Lisa and I have been working really hard behind the scenes to bring her brand and website up to speed with the level of support she is offering her clients. In a relatively short space of time, she grew from a small, one-woman-band retail consultancy to a full-scale, independent agency, with a small team, supporting retailers across a huge range of industries. We knew that, first and foremost, this needed to be reflected on her website; at that point, the mood of the site was very ‘shop small’. She was a cheerleader for small businesses, and very much still is, but we knew that we needed to refine and elevate to get the site to a place that said ‘agency’, rather than ‘mentor’. It’s been a thrilling 12 months, with enormous amounts of behind the scenes brainstorming, hours and hours of brand and web development (I think even I would be shocked if I could go back and add it all up), approximately 10,000 voice notes and even more emails. It’s taken grit and hard graft to keep up with the changes — not only in her business, but also in the external environment — but Lisa is an inspiring example of growing into your business with confidence and creativity, and has really shown that making those big changes, that take work, will benefit you immensely later down the line.
Through a deep understanding of her values, Lisa has built a wonderful business that is inclusive, inspiring and has helped an immense number of female-owned businesses to succeed in their own market. There is must excitement surrounding her brand at the moment, and you can experience it for yourself at www.lisa-may.com or on IG at @lisamay_co. There is also huge credit due to Jade from Jade Alana Photography, who we worked really closely with to bring this brand to life, and I would highly recommend her if you’re looking for a personal brand or product photographer. Neither Lisa May & Co or The Brand House would be what they are today without her.
Whether you work with a brand strategist or self-manage your brand, there are questions you should be asking yourself often when it comes to making changes within your business. Having always done things a certain way doesn’t necessarily mean that there is no room for improvement, even if on the surface it appears like your efforts have been serving you well. Do things still feel right? Has there been a shift in your audience, the people who are engaging with you? If so, is there room for growth, to make some changes to how you serve your community? If a global pandemic, three (more?) lockdowns and a complete overhaul in consumer behaviour has taught us anything, it’s that we must be ready to adapt when called to. That could be the difference between a business that leaves you feeling drained and defeated and a business that feels inspired and completely revitalises you.
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