I always thought I'd grow up to become a teacher. And for a while, I was - living in a tiny city in western Spain. I realised, however, that while I quite liked the classroom, and I certainly loved people, I was far more interested in conversation, observation and stories. It's probably why I used to smuggle my adult students away from their desks and into the nearest tapas bar to really talk (and enjoy some mejillones in spicy sauce).
It was 2009. I started a blog documenting the places I was visiting and the people I was meeting. By the time I reached Barcelona in 2011, I was interviewing and photographing small businesses and writing about them, and I was loving it.
I decided then to make this my career, starting as a copywriter for travel brands before joining one of London's early content marketing agencies. It was fast, demanding and occasionally chaotic, but gave me the chance to work with remarkable brands across travel, fashion, hospitality and lifestyle.
Since then, I've helped brands understand what makes them distinctive, finding the clearest, most engaging way to communicate it. My work has taken me from remote tea gardens in China and Japan to restaurant kitchens, farms and vineyards, and has included everything from brand strategy and editorial direction to copywriting, photography and creative campaigns.
I still approach the work much as I did in those tapas bars: through conversation, curiosity and close attention. I like getting beneath the polished version of a business, talking to the people behind it and understanding what they care about before working out how best to tell others.
Outside work, I write, take photographs, cook, garden and spend a lot of time beneath an old willow tree on the marshes. It all feeds back into the way I see and the stories I tell.
Clients include / have included:
The Goods Shed, Canterbury
AVANTCHA Tea
Mama Owl
Visit Canterbury
Atkin Guitars
Some Examples
Fractional Head of Marketing (Global)
What began as copywriting evolved quickly into a part-time Head of Marketing role with AVANTCHA Tea spanning 4 core countries, managing internal and external teams, including the launch of two new tea bars and retail spaces.
In 2024, I took a short hiatus from the role to travel with the founder across countries of origin to build extensive content banks of photography, video, and stories to support the brand core USP around direct sourcing.
Client
AVANTCHA Tea - Global
Year
2021-2026
Food & Farming
As part of an ongoing project to produce a book about food and farming in Kent, I have been working with the owner and a local academic to collect photography and stories from orchards to farms to the local dairy.
Client
The Goods Shed, Canterbury
Year
2019 - Current
Dinner on the Farm
Each summer, The Goods Shed Farm hosts outdoor suppers among the elements, building a kitchen restaurant on the land with nothing but fire and water. I produce a bank of images and videos capturing the event, as well as managing customer communications on email and website.
Photography from these events has been featured in Waitrose Magazine, and local publications such as Kent Life and Canterbury Courier.
Client
The Goods Shed, Canterbury
Year
2019 - Current
A House of Wellbeing
I worked closely with Jamila Askarova and her team in South Kensington as fractional Head of Communications for this beautiful house of wellbeing.
Our offering brought together the very best in holistic treatments with an independent retail space, tea house and events programme, connecting a community of exceptional practitioners and brands with customers through thoughtful, engaging experiences.
Client
Gazelli House, South Kensington
Year
2019 - 2022