Latest News | 26 August 2021
How becoming a Bondholder put Laura’s business in the frame
Running a business on your own can be an isolating experience – and it was the same for Laura Firth, founder of MiniAperture Photography.
That was until she was named among the ‘Galaxy’ in Marketing Derby’s Rising Stars competition. Laura has embraced her membership, boosting her business in the process. Here, in her own words, she talks about her own Bondholder journey.
I started MiniAperture Photography in December 2019 – at the time, I was working part-time for my local secondary school as a cover supervisor.
My intention was to run MiniAperture as a side-hustle on my days off for a couple of years while I built up my skills, my portfolio, my clients and my reputation, until it was viable enough to become my full-time source of income.
I started my working life in the live events industry as a stage technician after studying sound engineering at college as a school leaver.
I worked for Derby Assembly Rooms technical department as well as being a freelance technician at stadiums, arenas and festivals around the UK.
But I had to put my career on hold when I was expecting my first child, simply because it wasn't family friendly.
After my career as a sound and lighting technician prematurely ended, I spent 13 years job-hopping to find a new career path that I could fall in love with, but nothing ticked all the boxes for me. That was until I rediscovered my love for photography.
That's when I started looking into photography as a career, something that had captivated me for as long as I can remember.
It ticked all my boxes for creativity and technology, as well as making it fit in around my family.
When the pandemic hit, I had to put my business on the backburner a little.
I was home-schooling my own two children, as well as helping to care for the children who were classed as vulnerable or whose parents were key workers.
After a few months, the property market started to come back to life and I was inundated with bookings from my local estate agent, Marble Property Services.
By the time the summer holidays came to a close and schools were about to reopen, I was in a position where I only had time for one job.
I had to choose between the school (a steady and reliable income) or my photography (better for my mental wellbeing and job satisfaction). I went with my gut and chose to step into my business full-time.
Only nine months after registering my business, I was now a full-time freelancer! It was a little scary but incredibly liberating, I felt like I'd found my own identity again for the first time since becoming a mum.
The second and third lockdowns were much more difficult. Emotionally, we were all exhausted from the restricted lifestyle we were living in order to stay safe.
Home-schooling became increasingly difficult by the end of the year as I needed to spend more time keeping my business afloat. I was burnt out and it felt like there wasn't a light at the end of the tunnel.
It was during a meeting with Lindsey Newman of Passion Marketing and Tina Clough of Poppy PR in late 2020 that they mentioned Marketing Derby to me.
I hadn't heard of Marketing Derby at that point, but they strongly suggested I make contact to see what support they could offer me as a new business.
That's when I made contact with Lindsey Hatfield, Katie Wells and Maya Yates.
There was no pressure to become a Bondholder, they were just incredibly welcoming and really took me under their wing to help me grow as a business.
Thanks to them, I soon found myself as a member of Derby's Finest too!
A few people had also highly recommended Marketing Derby’s Rising Stars competition to me.
The exposure it would give me as a business owner is something I would never have managed on my own. There was a huge degree of credibility that came with the 'Rising Star' title too.
I didn't have any faith in my abilities or my prospects for even being shortlisted. But I had a lot of support from people around me, and it inspired me to at least try.
One week before Christmas, I received the news that I'd been crowned as one of the highly commended entries and I was absolutely gobsmacked and shocked!
I'm the sort of person who never wins anything. I quite literally felt effervescent with excitement but I had to keep it under my hat for another month. Not an easy feat!
Being a Bondholder has helped to put me in front of a new audience of potential collaborators and clients, something I could never have achieved on my own. And having a platform to shout about my successes via the e-shots has been invaluable too.
It's also given me the opportunity to make a difference to the city where I was born and raised, which is a wonderful feeling to be able to give something back.
Being a Bondholder has also opened up support networks, which has had a huge impact as a solopreneur. Not just from the team at Marketing Derby, but we also have a Whatsapp group chat for the Rising Star winners both past and present! It feels like a home from home.
When I first met Lindsey and Maya over Zoom 10 months ago, I was petrified of taking part in video calls and video networking. But I've worked really hard to overcome my fears and I've joined as many of the online events with Marketing Derby as I can. I even found the courage to hang around for the breakout rooms afterwards and do some networking.
When the first in-person event was announced for 2021, I wasted no time in applying for a place. I knew how limited the capacity had to be, so I was thrilled when I received the confirmation that I'd got a place (I felt a bit like Cinderella – you SHALL go to the ball!).
It was amazing to start meeting so many familiar faces that I'd only ever seen from the shoulders up. It was such a positive experience that I now attend as many in-person events as I can.
I've become quite close to some of the Bondholders through the Rising Star scheme and because of Derby's Finest; they've become my work family.
Not only have some of them become clients, but they've become long term friends and ambassadors of my business.
I've been lucky to collaborate with a wide variety of bondholders, including Smith Partnership, Compendium Living, QUAD, Future Proof Films and Colleague Box to name just a few.
I love the feeling of belonging that being a Bondholder has brought me. It can be very isolating running a business alone, especially during the pandemic.
But becoming a Bondholder this year has completely changed all of that.
Becoming a part of Marketing Derby has opened up support networks that I didn't have before too. As a new business, I have a lot to thank Marketing Derby for.
To other companies considering becoming a bondholder I would highly recommend it in a heartbeat.
There are countless membership-based networking groups that businesses are pressured to join but Marketing Derby is nothing like any of those and stands out miles above the rest.
A big part of that is because of their mission to make Derby a better place to live, work and play. They bring much needed investment to the city and they nurture fantastic relationships with their Bondholder community.
So, not only do you get regular opportunities for no-pressure networking but you're part of a cog in a machine that helps to make our city even greater.
The Bondholders who simply pay their Bondholder fee each year and don't make the most of their membership are missing out on countless opportunities; they can help to raise not only the profile of Derby but their own profiles as businesses too.
The Bondholder community is a rich and varied talent pool – being part of that opens the door for some incredible collaborations with other Bondholders.
Being an active Bondholder helps to put you in the limelight with the publications that Marketing Derby regularly releases too. It's a no-brainer in my opinion.
When I became part of the Rising Star galaxy at the start of the year, I was given 12 months of complimentary bondholder membership.
Once that 12 months is up, I'm planning to continue my membership long into the future.
Having that support network of like-minded peers, opportunities to collaborate and network with those peers plus the opportunities to have a positive impact on our city is worth every penny.
I'm now working towards establishing myself as the go-to provider for virtual tours in and around Derby, to truly help put our fantastic Derby-born businesses on the map.
I am very optimistic about the future. Since the first lockdown, I've put a lot of time into building relationships with my peers and fellow Bondholders.
Now that we're able to start safely meeting people in person again, I'm continuing to nurture and cultivate those relationships even further.
I've always enjoyed getting to know people and going above and beyond to help them, Marketing Derby has simply been the catalyst that has accelerated this.
I believe that the relationships I'm building now will help my business to become more sustainable in the long term. I'm already starting to see some positive results from this and I'm excited to see what lies ahead!
I would like to offer my immense gratitude to Marketing Derby for taking me under their wing at such a tumultuous and unprecedented period in our history, for always publishing my stories in the e-shots, for being there when I need help and for making me a part of your fantastic community. Thank you!
Author: Laura Firth, founder of MiniAperture Photography
