Charlotte Mair is the founder and Managing Director of marketing agency, The Fitting Room.
From starting the agency with £17.22 in her bank account, the business now work with some of the UK’s most loved brands, artists, and businesses. A contributor to Campaign, PR Week, AdAge and The Marketing Society, Charlotte and her agency are committed to driving hype, demand and legacy for brands.
Charlotte has worked her way to the boardroom by becoming a conduit between stakeholders and their guest, simplifying the evolving landscape. She will frequently be heard commenting that the book, ‘The Tanning of America’ influenced her outlook and empowered her to embrace her cultural differences, to add further value to her client’s marketing communications. Her ability to connect a client’s brand and proposition to make an interesting story steeped in culture and experience for a customer is unrivalled.
This, paired with her ‘get sh*t done’ attitude has resulted in The Fitting Room delivering some of UK’s most well-known campaigns and events. Clients will tell you; Charlotte is the person you want at the table if you’re really looking to drive change. She will challenge, educate and get you comfortable with the uncomfortable, which will in turn, drive a better outcome.
From global brands like Bugaboo, to household names like Idris Elba, to our favourite eateries like Wagamama, Charlotte is committed to creating hype, demand and legacy.
1. Best piece of advice you’ve been given
‘’Don’t forget to live’’.
I think when you’ve got a career vision, you can sometimes be so head down and focused, you can forget to just be. About four five ago, I started to have ‘f*ck it moments’. My accountant dreads them, but for me, they are moments of living my best life. One of my favourite memories is jumping on a plane with my whole team, and partying to Craig David in Ibiza for 24 hours.
2. Worst piece of advice you’ve been given
‘’Work hard and stay humble’’
I think this advice is so misleading, especially for women. We all understand that hard work is at the top of the funnel, and to get any levels of success, we have to do this. But once we achieve, why do we have to stay humble? Surely, if we want to drive more women to the forefront, we have to encourage them to celebrate their successes and show other women how they did it. I think celebrating wins is another way of paying it forward. We’re showing it can be done.
3. What would you tell your younger self?
‘’It’s not that deep’’
My younger sister always uses this as a phrase to mainly get out of chores, but there’s something about it that really resonates with my younger self. Looking back, things that impacted me when I was starting the business really weren’t that deep. Things have a funny way of working themselves out.
4. What excites you most about the future of your industry?
Change is coming! Our whole business plan at The Fitting Room is modelled on agencies based in the US that are deeply entrenched in storytelling and culture. We’re now seeing brands in the UK really open up to this approach, and we’re seeing a new type of thinking and leadership stepping into the ring.
Marketing and advertising plays a huge role in society. The campaigns the industry displays determine how people live, feel about themselves and the values they put on things. For this to be truly reflective of society, more people have to be invited to the table. Broadened thinking and different lived experiences are key.
5. Who or what is your biggest inspiration?
I have to give two here. First up – my parents. They moved a young black family out to the countryside to get us into the best education system. They were relentless in their mission to make sure that we didn’t see our skin colour as a barrier to achieving what we wanted, for them, the absolute foundation for that was education and confidence.
My second biggest inspiration is an agency in the US called Team Epiphany. Co-founded by a true gamechanger and leader in culture, Coltrane Curtis. Watching his agency from across the pond has given me so much clarity on being authentic, bold and unapologetic. Their work represents everything I aspire The Fitting Room to be, uncompromising on excellence.
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