28 April 2021|Latest Posts, Meet the Successful Founder
Tori Porter is the Founder of London-based fitness & wellbeing PR agency Tori Porter Communications. Tori set up the company at age 24 initially in order to personally offer lower cost and lower risk PR to smaller emerging and exciting brands in the fitness and wellness space. Now, Tori works with leading fitness brands from activewear, to CBD oil and boutique fitness studios.
Tori can you tell us a little about your background and the company?
Having worked for a few years at various PR agencies, I noticed a gap for exciting and emerging brands in the fitness and wellbeing space who didn’t have the budgets for larger agencies. I had a personal interest in fitness and wellbeing and had made a lot of contacts in the space, and I found that I wasn’t able to work with the brands that I built relationships with because they couldn’t afford the fees of the agency I was at. I wanted to take the control and work with these brands in my own way to give them what they wanted, and this came at a financial benefit for both the brands and myself. I work with around 5 brands at one time, helping them to grow brand awareness through a combination of press coverage, influencer relations, brand partnerships and events. I’ve been running the businesses for just over a year and have achieved exceptional results for clients, as well as having considerable waitlist of brands desiring my services.
How did the idea come to you for the company?
As mentioned, I was working in an agency at the time, the only person in the office working across the health & fitness brands. I was often out and about at London gyms, industry events and getting to know brand founders, influencers and press in this area. I was often approached by brands about PR but I only really had the capacity to suggest the brand to my agency and the rest was taken out of my hands. Somewhere along the way, often down to fees, the conversation was cut short, and I soon realised there was a gap for the exciting, emerging brands who didn’t have budget for large PR retainers, but needed access to the contacts I had. I could provide my services at a lower cost AND work on my own terms! It allowed me to work with brands I really love and have now built close relationships with.
How did you achieve awareness Tori Porter?
A huge part of my brand awareness has been through Instagram. I had grown a little following / community through the gyms/ fitness industry events in London and so when I started my PR business I was able to share it with everyone. I share coverage and client wins across my personal and business accounts and most new clients find me through Instagram. Additionally, a lot of business interest comes via word of mouth, which is amazing!
How have you been able to gain funding and grow?
For me there are very few overheads. All I need is a laptop, a few database subscriptions and I can work from anywhere. Growth for me at the moment depends on capacity. I have been able to work with 6 clients a month at a push, and 4-5 comfortably. The next step would be hiring someone, however I’m letting this unfold naturally when it’s the right time.
What are the key successes?
Key successes have been almost tripling my earnings by going solo, having a continuous and growing waitlist of clients, organising a hugely successful press event for CONTUR in my second month of business which saw 30 press attend and the event itself was featured by The Sun and Business Insider, and most recently getting Pure Sport CBD featured on Sky News.
What were/are the challenges and how have you overcome these?
One challenge has been figuring out my capacity, because as long as the interest is there I could take on as many clients as I desire. However, I’ve had to be extremely logical and disciplined to make sure quality is prioritised over quantity, and so figuring out what my capacity is has taken time, but through trial and error I’ve found a comfortable workload that pushes me but doesn’t compromise my mental health. Turning down potential clients due to capacity, I’ve found, has also increased interest in my services.
What are your plans now/for the future?
With lockdown restrictions easing, I’m looking forward to networking in person once again as this is a crucial part of the job. I’m continuing to provide exceptional results for clients, and in the future, I will look at taking someone on board which may allow me to take on more clients. I’m taking day by day and letting things unfold naturally at this point.
What would you like to share with others to encourage them to start their own entrepreneurship journey?
You don’t need to be at the top of the career ladder, or know everything before you start your entrepreneurship journey. As long as you have the drive to succeed and the willingness to learn, the best time to start is now.
Can you share you top tips for entrepreneurial success?
1. Organisation is key
2. Fake it till you make it- be confident and own your area
3. Keep Moving
4. Work Hard
5. Don’t take things personally
Who are the people who inspire you the most?
My Dad- he is the perfect example of the quote “to all the doors that closed on me, I’m coming back to buy the place”. He did just that when running his own business
Grace Beverley- ultimate girl boss. Constantly learning to become better and that’s extremely motivating @gracebeverley
What are your favourite inspirational /motivational quotes?
“The ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do”
“Advertising is you saying you’re good. PR is someone else saying you’re good”
Anything by Robin Sharma
What are your social handles and website links so our readers can connect with you?
Tori Porter
@tori__porter @toriporter.communications
