Managing the life of a small-business owner is like riding a rollercoaster

Two decades ago, I became frustrated at how far my corporate director role sat from ‘hands on’ research. Combined with a cerebral palsy diagnosis for my young son, something had to give – and it wasn’t going to be my child’s well being, or my mental health. So, in 2000, Breathe was born.

We’re a boutique market research agency that helps charities and businesses understand their customers, donors and service users. We use qualitative, quantitative and semiotic approaches to dig deep into people’s attitudes, motivations and behaviours. The aim: to create laser-sharp
strategies to drive our client’s businesses. It’s all about making complex human behaviour simple, helping to deliver better brand strategy, communications and new project development.

When we started, the business was me, a laptop and some loyal clients. Then, in 2003, I was joined by my now business partner (who also happens to be my sister). Together, we’ve grown the business – working with hand-picked research experts and semioticians across the globe.

There are stand out moments, like winning an award for our work with Asda’s Mum shoppers, or seeing our work around mental health stigma translated into the ‘Time for Change’ campaign, which had a huge impact on changing societal attitudes towards mental health.

But it’s also about the ‘No’s’ we’ve delivered to our clients: we’ve saved companies a fortune by refusing to move forward with bad advertising or products that don’t have longevity and won’t cut through.

Of course, managing the life of a small-business owner is like riding a rollercoaster. You need to ensure you’re built to survive the feast and famine cycles, but you also need discipline so you don’t become too busy, and to possess a self-belief that stops you from taking rejection to heart.

The pandemic has been tough: our business has pivoted from having 95 per cent of our interactions with consumers be face-to-face, to being 95 per cent online. We’ve reshaped our team for this ‘brave new world’, and that meant saying goodbye to some roles, which was hard.

Despite the tough times, Breathe’s 21 year journey has been an absolute delight. It’s afforded us the control we needed to ensure we were present as parents. It also meant we’ve conducted intellectually stimulating work – and ultimately, seen results that have made the world a little better.

Along the way, we’ve learnt that it’s key to be willing to try new things, even if that means making mistakes.

Also, truth is everything – our reputation is strong because we never fudge our findings. We’re crystal clear in the direction we deliver, whether it’s good news or bad.

We’ve accepted that not everyone will want to hear or work with us because of this, but that means we attract clients who are brave enough to hear the challenges and do the work needed to create compelling and worthwhile businesses.

Putting an eye to the future, we’re acutely aware of the fast-changing world before us. Technology has given our clients more opportunities for ‘DIY’ research, meaning there’s less need for tactical research from external agencies. Thankfully, within those changes, there’s also a greater need for strategic insight and consultancy, which has always been our sweet spot. We’ll continue to create meaning from a range of data sources, using the human touch to add value to the businesses and charities we work with.