Karen Hardie

www.xheightdesign.co.uk Are you looking to take your business to the next level but know that you need to revamp your brand to reflect this? Do you have 'brand shame', and cringe just a little when you're asked to show someone your website or your products? Growing a business from the ground up is tough. We get it and have been there ourselves. There's so much to consider and cash flow is always a challenge. So it's completely understandable that building a brand was the last thing on your mind. However, there's a turning point for most successful business owners when they understand that what has worked in the past, just won't cut the mustard if they want to grow their business in new and greater directions. This is especially true when building your brand and visual identity. Your brand is important. Like it or not, it will influence your everyday activity and your long-term success. It is the sum total of everything people feel about your business. It is your business's identity, personality and character. This is where we come in. With many years' experience in brand strategy and visual identity, working for some of the largest brands in the world, we are bona fide "brandaholics" who choose to use our passion these days to help equally passionate SMEs to bring their brands to life.

Simultaneously to taking up the COO role at Private Label Movement, I also tool on the role of COO and Brand Manager at Emmy's Best, which is a pet products brand headquartered in Texas. This was a very varied role which included overseeing the company's operational processes, employing strategies to maximise customer satisfaction as well as managing the marketing initiatives. I also assisted in compiling the company's budget.

In late 2016, I decided it was time to take a break from the world of Branding and utilise my project management skills in a different way. I took up a role as a COO at Private Label Movement. Frequently one of the top ten business podcasts on iTunes, Private Label Movement, with host Kevin Rizer, took listeners behind the often closed doors of the Private Label physical products industry, where everyday people were starting to build six and seven figure businesses with a brand they had created. My role was very varied, ranging from managing manufacturers and other suppliers, to overseeing the internal operations of the company and the work of its employees.