WHO SIGNED THIS OFF: APRIL EDITION
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APRIL EDITION:
WHO SIGNED THIS OFF?!
It’s been a busy month for Harpswood clients.
Manufacturing firm Isembard closed its $50 million Series A round. The story was exclusively broken by Sky News City Editor Mark Kleinman and followed up by Sifted, Axios and Fortune. CEO Alex Fitzgerald described the role of PR in building reputation and credibility as “central” to the fundraise.
Octopus Energy CEO Greg Jackson undertook a round of media interviews on the energy crisis caused by the Iran war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. During appearances on ITV’s Peston, Radio 4’s Today programme and Sky News, he landed the message that the UK needs to electrify as it is still too susceptible to volatile global fossil fuel markets.
Naked Energy CEO Christophe Williams met King Charles at the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s CEO Summit in Hampton Court. The King – a long-time advocate of renewables – was fascinated by solar thermal technology and stayed at the Naked Energy stand longer than had been scheduled.
WIN A FREE 60-MINUTE
MEDIA TRAINING SESSION
This month, we’re giving one Who Signed This Off? subscriber the chance to win a free 60-minute media training session with a former journalist.
Got a big interview looming? Or just want to feel sharper, calmer, and more in control when the spotlight’s on you? We’ve got you.
In the session, we’ll show you how to land your key messages and handle even the trickiest questions with confidence. We’ll put you through a filmed interview scenario so you can put it all into practice.
To enter, just email whosignedthisoff@harpswood.com. We’ll pick the winner at random.
FOUNDERS UNFILTERED
"GETTING CREDIBLE COVERAGE IS A CENTRAL PART OF RAISING FUNDS"
Isembard, the precision engineering franchise business, has successfully closed a $50 million Series A funding round. We asked Alex Fitzgerald, founder and CEO about how PR helped with the raise and his take on founding a business.
For the full interview and more details about how Isembard raised $50 million, head to the Harpswood blog.
How important was PR to your fundraise?
Central. While the hunt for algorithmic clicks and reach on LinkedIn posts is common for a typical founder, most people are reached through media and the press. It’s the ripple in the pool that triggers wider conversations. Whether your customers are businesses or consumers, speaking to the press directly should be a core part of how you project your business across the ether!
How much difference does media coverage make to your credibility when you’re pitching to investors?
Media coverage matters as it helps drive all areas of the business, which investors and founders should care about. Customer acquisition. Finding the best talent. When you Google or ChatGPT a company, people check the news to see what is current. Getting credible coverage is a central part of trust building. It would be very much harder to pitch to investors if they’d never heard of you. I always use media coverage in investor decks.
If you could go back to day one, what would you tell yourself?
Less time planning, more time reacting to reality. I remember writing a 100 page thesis for my first business before doing any actual work. The moment that doc was written, it became out of date.
What's one book you think everybody should read?
Material World by Ed Conway.
NEWS-O-METER
🤩 NAILED IT
Following a throwaway comment from actor Timothée Chalamet claiming “no one cares about ballet and opera anymore”, Seattle Opera spotted their marketing moment and ran with it - launching the promo code, TIMOTHEE, for 14% off tickets for their latest production. They even extended the offer to Timmy himself.
🥶 FAILED IT
Championship promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town were criticised after Nigel Farage took a tour of the club and waved around a personalised “Farage 10” shirt. Ipswich initially claimed the Reform leader hadn’t been invited, then backtracked. The club also issued a statement saying it was “apolitical” and “proud to be inclusive”. It was derided by many fans and pundits.
📺 BRITTIN BROADCASTING CORPORATION
Matt Brittin was announced as Director General of the BBC. The former Google chief’s appointment was greeted with outrage in some quarters over fears he is too close to Big Tech and specifically AI. Departing DG Tim Davie gave a fascinating exit interview to podcast The Rest is Entertainment covering Trump, Bob Vylan and the Baftas among other controversies.
🔥 HOT TAKE
The Government’s Future Homes Standard made it a requirement for newbuilds to be fitted with solar and heat pumps – and stated that plug-in panels would be on sale in supermarkets. It received (expectedly) mixed headlines, with the Daily Mail answering its own sceptical question: “Ed Miliband’s answer to the Iran energy crisis? £400 plug-in solar panels from the ‘Middle of Lidl” Other media focused on the soaring popularity of low carbon tech, with The Times headline reading: “British homeowners rush to install solar panels amid Iran conflict.”
🇬🇧 ARE YOU ‘LONDONMAXXING’?
The term, a play on the online subculture of ‘looksmaxxing’, did the rounds on X last month, propelled by London-based founders and innovators pushing back on the all-too-familiar narrative of decline. Their case is grounded in what they see day to day. The talent isn’t leaving, there hasn’t been a meaningful exodus of companies post-Brexit, and if anything, AI giants are increasingly choosing London as the base for their European or even global operations. Then there is the ‘Golden Triangle’. Alongside Oxford and Cambridge, London forms a geographical ecosystem for science, tech and innovation.
What ‘Londonmaxxers’ see is London still doing what it has always done well: bringing together diverse talent, capital and opportunity. For founders, that means access to one of the deepest hiring pools anywhere, with fast-growing companies able to secure highly skilled people far more easily than in most other cities. So maybe the question isn’t whether London is declining, but who benefits from saying it is.
HARPSWOOD RECOMMENDS
🎧 HEARD BY HARPSWOOD
Strong Message Here (Radio 4 and podcast) is a must-listen for anyone working in comms. Hosted by satirist Armando Iannucci - whose creds include The Day Today, The Thick of It and Veep – it takes apart meaningless verbiage. Phrases recently given the Iannucci treatment include “Let me be clear”, “categorically deny” and “existential threat”. And you can find out what happens when the ‘Westminster Bubble’ pops…
🗣️ MIND YOUR LANGUAGE
The FT revisited one of its favourite subjects: corporate bullshit. It reported that workers receptive to word salad - or “noise masquerading as insight” - showed lower levels of analytical thinking and decision making, according to a study by Cornell University. It added that LinkedIn’s algorithm seemed to reward posts “that read like actual nonsense”. Depressing stuff.
HARPSWOOD IRL
MEET OUR LONDON TEAM IN April AT:
🗓️ Innovation Zero@ Olympia London on Tuesday 28th & Wednesday 29th April. We’ll have a stand and are planning an interesting media challenge to all-comers…
🗓️ Climate Tech Time@ The Conduit on Wednesday 22nd April.
Before the event we will also be hosting PR office hours.
Email whosignedthisoff@harpswood.com to grab a slot.
🗓️ Climate Coffeea monthly networking opportunity @ St James’ Cafe on Thursday 30th April