Starting a new business is a tall order at the best of times but imagine combining that with the unpredictable new reality of COVID-19 and working closely with your spouse. Managing just such a feat is newly formed creative media and digital marketing agency, ALT.
In conversation with The Scoop Laura and David Haggerty, co-founders of ALT, share the highs and lows of life behind the scenes at the Glaswegian agency.
Finally able to pause and reflect the pair said: “Establishing a business during the tumult of a global pandemic was not just challenging; it was a test of resilience, adaptability, and sheer determination. For many, it felt like treading water in a tempest, and we were very uncertain about what lay ahead.
“Looking back, COVID feels like a distant memory now, but it was scary and hard. ALT was in its nascent stages when we went into the first lockdown, dealing a severe blow to our initial plans, removing all networking opportunities and dwindling revenue streams. We found that when faced with such a sudden and stark reality of financial uncertainty, advertising and marketing spending was amongst the first investments to be cut.”
Formed in the different world of 2018 ALT has embraced flexible working and providing emotional support to ensure the wellbeing of a close-knit team, emphasising a friendship-centric work culture.
Married for 12 years Laura and David know first-hand the importance of a strong working relationship, with the pair leaning heavily on each other through the challenges of entrepreneurship. “We just don’t know it any other way,” they confess. “Working together enables us to facilitate the perfect work-life balance. We are a team in all aspects of our lives, making us entirely synced.”
“We have two young children, and we make sure that we always divide our time sensibly, ensuring that both our family and our business receive the love and attention they each deserve.”
While the boundaries between work and personal life may blur at times, Laura and David’s shared passion for ALT serves as a unifying force.
“We also make sure to keep a date night in the diary! And we often have long lunch breaks together during the working week, a beer on the way home or even a cheeky Wednesday afternoon cinema date (if things are quiet at the office). If we didn’t work together that flexibility and impromptu ‘us time’ wouldn’t be possible, so we are grateful for it.”
This successful approach has seen the agency move to new offices within McLellan Works on Sauchiehall Street, a bustling creative hub masterminded by architects Stallan-Brand in tandem with a new website. “As anyone who works in the creative industries will know, the temptation to keep refreshing their brand identity to make it more ‘like us’ is hard to resist,” Laura explains.
“At ALT, we feel that our identity is strong and unique to us, that we are determined to allow it to shine through in everything that we do. To establish a business is difficult, but to establish a vibrant brand is harder.”
ALT now has 17 employees delivering creative campaigns in the consumer and b2b space. Major clients include UEFA, Whyte & Mackay, The Scottish Football Association, Morphy Richards and Linn.