Get Ready for the Launch
Launching a business has been one of the most exciting and terrifying things I’ve ever done.
For more than 15 years I’ve created and developed communications, stories and opportunities for organisations and start ups. Campaigns, launches, media coverage, workshops, partnerships, events, strategies. I loved the work, but somewhere along the way I realised I was spending more time helping other people back themselves than I was backing myself.
So eventually, after 12 months of overthinking, driving my partner mad with indecision, voice notes to the school friends whatsapp group and talking myself both into and out of it repeatedly, I decided to make the call.
Bailey&Reilly was built from a belief that good communication genuinely changes lives. That confidence can shape futures. That relationships matter. That people still connect with honesty, personality and proper conversations.
The business itself is named after my grandparents, two hard-working people from the North East mining community, who built a life through resilience, humour, community and getting on with things even when times were difficult.
They wouldn’t have the first notion of what polished personal brands or five-year growth strategies were. What they did have was integrity, warmth and the ability to make people feel welcome. I think about that a lot when I think about the kind of business I want Bailey&Reilly to become because their legacy of helping others to thrive, is everything.
What’s surprised me most since launching is how much of starting a business has nothing to do with business at all.
It’s learning how to trust your instincts. Learning how to handle uncertainty. Learning that confidence doesn’t usually arrive before you do something brave, it tends to appear afterwards. It’s realising that visibility can feel incredibly uncomfortable even when you’re held a microphone on camera for a day job. It’s understanding that some days you’ll feel unstoppable and other days you’ll question every decision you’ve made while reorganising your website fonts for the fourth time.
I’ve also learned that clarity matters far more than trying to sound impressive.
People respond to honesty. To warmth. To personality. To communication that sounds human. Ironically, launching a communications business has reinforced my belief that many people are bored of seeing the same old ‘trends’ on socials and polished corporate noise. Most people simply want to know if what they’re seeing is ‘real’.
That idea now sits at the centre of everything Bailey&Reilly is becoming.
The past few months have brought opportunities I never expected, from developing confidence and communication workshops for young people, to pitching festival collaborations, reconnecting with journalism and building creative projects rooted in community, conversation and storytelling. Who knew we’d be back on work experience (although this time hosting it!).
Some ideas will work brilliantly. Some won’t. Some will evolve into something completely different. I’m slowly learning that this is probably the point.
Starting before you feel fully ready changes you. So if there’s something you’ve been putting off, talking yourself out of or waiting for permission to get stuck in, let me know and I’ll hype you up.
Dedicated to MJB and GR, the OGs.
