PR & Marketing
My Claire & The City blog delves into the modern world in order to inspire debate about our culture. You’ll find topical features and interviews with those making waves in the industry plus my personal how-to guides and London tips and career advice.
LCM – Chester Barrie AW16 Awards Show
As a relative novice in menswear, this was my first visit to Chester Barrie's LCM show, but boy they knocked my socks off. The venue was a sublime room at the Waldorf Hilton which was so grand, I could have just stayed there forever. It had much the red carpet awards theme with, yah you guessed...
LCM – AW16 Turnbull & Asser The Artist & The Architect
Turnbull and Asser are the classiest of menswear brands; established 1885, received their first Royal Warrant from Edward VII, make a lot of bespoke pieces, made in England, tally ho chaps! Their SS16 LCM launch was an in-store only affair which was small but perfectly formed, but for AW16 they...
LCM – Belstaff AW16 Heading North
For last LCM, Belstaff took their SS16 range off to the dessert. Well to be factually accurate, they moved sand dunes into the Old Billingsgate where models stood under hot lights where outside stood an army vehicle with The Shard and Tower Bridge creating an imposing backdrop for the range. For...
Getting Naked With Interview Chloe Beeney
Chloe Beeney is irreverent; she’s bold, memorable and loaded with fashion knowledge. When I first met her she was a force to be reckoned with, wearing a shiny black trench coat and Christian Louboutin boots with her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. In a world of image, she surely knows how...
Spinning a Yarn – The Future Of Fashion Tech
Why are we obsessed with our clothes being magical? Just as costume designer Sandy Powell discussed, the power of clothes to shape and transform an image is ever-present in our culture and history. Now we're going one step further with designers turning to technology, and indeed technology turning...
Costume Designer Sandy Powell Interview by Kinvara Balfour
I am a believer in the power of costume. Clothes can create an image that quite often signals social, economic and political status. In film, characters can be good, bad, rich, poor, from a different era, blending in, standing out, on the rise, on the edge, and all this can be echoed in the...
Can We Sell You Christmas?
Tis the season to spend money, fa la la la la, la la la la! Oh don't worry, I'm not Scrooge (honestly)! And as we already know, Christmas is already a top money spinner with businesses making or breaking at this time of year. Many are now trying to OWN Christmas whether through red coloured cups,...
Marketing A Charity – Shine Night Walk Marathon Magic
Why oh WHY would you do a marathon? That's what you must be thinking. This is what I was thinking at mile 21 in the dark streets of London. Walking a marathon has never been a lifelong dream or something I have ever strived for. But the reason I walked 26.2 miles on Saturday night was the...
In Vogue – Kinvara Balfour Interviews Alexandra Shulman
As preconceptions go, Alexandra Shulman has a lot to live up to, after all she is the editor of Vogue, the most formidable and revered of fashion magazines – even Carrie Bradshaw struggled to be ‘Vogue’. Alexandra Shulman is being interviewed for Apple’s In Conversation With series by Kinvara...
That’s Shoe Biz – Patrick Cox Talks Lathbridge
On Tuesday this week the fash pack (including one Liz Hurley in an incredible Amanda Wakeley black dress) descended on the V&A to see legendary shoe maker Patrick Cox being interviewed by Kinvara Balfour. You know how much I love Kinvara from her Getting Naked With interview and from her...
Interview with Influencer Lorna Luxe
Lorna Luxe has burst into my life like a perfectly formed, seriously well-dressed stick of dynamite. My first glance of LornaLuxe came at Donna Ida as I perused the shots the team had taken of denim lovers at London Fashion Week. Lorna Luxe was selected as one of our 'Best Dressed' and that blog...
How to PR a Break Up – The Rules
Ok so Kate Moss' marriage has allegedly ended. Cue a zillion headline 'whyyy or whyyy can't poor Kate find true love' (take reference from 'Poor Jennifer Aniston' post Brad Pitt). And One Direction's Zayn and Little Mix's Perrie have broken off their engagment - WHAT? They are not the first...
Interview with PR and Digital Expert Rachel Hardy
Rachel Hardy was born to be in PR; she’s super hardworking, passionate, supreme networker and she has (quite importantly) got the type of honesty and integrity that has made her respected by her colleagues, peers, celebrities and journalists alike. She is THE Head of Press at Lime Pictures. Not...
PR Win – Hot Poldark Makes Cornwall Scorching
Now then, how about if the BBC television series of Winston Graham’s Poldark had been filmed in a dingy town where it was raining all the time? Ok stop picturing Ross Poldark aka Aidan Turner shirtless in the rain! Or perhaps if Cornwall was shiny and gorgeous but Ross had a beer gut instead of a...
Interview with Kinvara Balfour
If you have ever seen Kinvara Balfour on stage, you'll know that she is the epitome of elegance and poise. If you have been paying attention to what she is saying, you'll know that she is determined, knowledgable and at home in the spotlight. These enviable characteristics are far from surprising,...
Château de Versailles is Place of Wonder
Now, I’m not about to give you a history lesson, but I am about to share a very beautiful place. Château de Versailles is somewhere I’ve heard of – history books, guide books and the occasional magazine – but no one has quite managed to shake me and say, ‘God, the Palace at Versailles is tres...
Far From The Madding Crowd Film
“I have a piano, and I have my own farm and I have no need for a husband.” Carey Mulligan as Bathsheba Everdene I haven’t read Far From The Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy, but now I really want to. The recent film starring Carey Mulligan as Bathsheba Everdene isn’t the first adaptation of the book,...
Interview With Threepipe’s Jim Hawker
Think PR is all fluffy canapés and champagne? Think again my friends, because PR is a business. Jim Hawker is a serious PR guy with a witty sense of humour, for who else would have named their agency after Sherlock Holmes (think Conan Doyle rather than Benedict Cumberbatch)? Jim’s style is cool,...
Panache Lingerie My Role Model Launch
The lingerie market is one that interests me, as I discussed in my post 'Who Sells You Your Pants' - I'm always intrigued by the marketing ploys we use when simply trying to flog the essentials. Often it can feel like we're overselling things, like seriously can the right brassier REALLY empower...
Review Edith Bowman’s Great British Music Festivals
“I’ve never had a time when I said I’m never coming back to a festival,” Edith Bowan. Edith Bowman is a believer in an egalitarian festival society. One which embraces a changing music industry and instills a belief that festivals should be a place that anyone and everyone can go to - pregnant...
NEWS FLASH – David Beckham Turns 40 & Joins Instagram
Ah David Beckham, how we LOVE YOU! Well I always loved you, but your public image has had a rocky ride as I revealed in David Beckham Exposed. Yet there is reason for celebration, the ex-footballer is celebrating his 40th birthday by joining social media platform Instagram. Happy days. He's...
Interview with Slowette and En Brogue’s Hannah Rochell
Hannah Rochell is a modern multi-tasker. As Fashion Features Editor at InStyle magazine, she's committed to delivering inspirational yet practical advice to 30 something women who are looking for catwalk style for real life. As if that wasn't challenging enough, Hannah has added another...
NAKED REVIEW – Business of Beauty – Charlotte Tilbury
"There's nothing low key about my life darling." This is one of the first quotes I note down from Charlotte Tilbury as she talks in conversation with Kinvara Balfour at the Apple Store on Regent Street. It seems to combine the makeup artist turned business woman's acute self awareness and...
NAKED REVIEW – Dior and I Movie – Sublime
If you are in fashion, see Dior and I. If you are thinking about going into fashion, see Dior and I. If you appreciate art, hard work and a touch of drama, see Dior and I. This is a no holds barred, access all areas documentary focusing on the newly appointed Creative Director of Dior, Raf Simons,...
NAKED REVIEW – Barter Books Alnwick – Business Masterclass
We talk A LOT these days about retail, and how the high street is declining and businesses are having to adapt to stay relevant to their customer in the increasing convenience of online shopping. So it is somewhat heartening to find a business which is thriving in an industry which you might...
Alexander McQueen Savage Beauty Review
Alexander McQueen was a creative genius and joined together beauty, art, sculpture, history and culture all into one beautiful vision of fashion. His clothes were crafted, almost sculpted and he could see beauty in the ordinary or as he said himself, "I think there is beauty in everything. What...
7 Inspiring Career Lessons from Emily Johnson Fashion Foie Gras
If you're looking for your next career step in fashion or are just starting out on your journey, then you can certainly take some well seasoned advice from the self confessed 'grandmother of blogging' Emily Johnston Fashion Foie Gras (she started blogging in her 30s and is ONLY actually 35 in real...
Interview Vogue’s Lauren Milligan
You need a cool head to work in digital, but you need nerves of steel if you're heading up the world's leading fashion website. Lauren Milligan is in the driving seat of Vogue Online as their News Editor, quite literally breaking fashion news every, single, day. She's a well respected industry...
Spring Clean Your Wardrobe – Update Your Brand Image
I recently had a spring clean of my wardrobe. Not the wussy kind I normally have where I get everything out, imagine some emotional attachment/marvel that it is not completely knackered/think of the next hypothetical time I will wear it. Oh no, this was EPIC. Turned out, not that I’d like to...
Interview – 10 Lessons from GQ’s Dylan Jones
I wasn't sure what to expect of Dylan Jones. But to be blunt (as he can be) it was a joy, especially if you enjoy a little dry humour as I do. I wrote about GQ not long ago after the GQ Awards were photo bombed by Kim Kardashian. Yet men are continuing to go from strength to strength as Jones...
Interview with Disneyrollergirl Navaz Batliwalla
I, like many people I suspect, first knew of Navaz Batliwalla through her fashion blog Disneyrollergirl. Her achingly cool blog is something of a juxtaposition – a name which could suggest you might be served up a Mickey Mouse fashion blogger on roller skates but in contrast you will find a level...
Love Makes The (Marketing) World Go Round
Cashing in on love seems cynical no? Taking advantage and marketing love, the purist of emotions which (in theory) shouldn't be commercialised. But alas as the marketing cycle goes on, the second the Christmas cards have been heaved off the shelves, up shoot Valentine's Day cards. Pink and red,...
Fake It Till You Make It – How Important Is Image?
Image is a complicated thing. On the one hand – it is revered higher than anything else. But sometimes we loathe our addiction to it. Why does it matter what someone is wearing if they’re doing a good job as we asked last summer with the ‘Downing Street Catwalk’? Or is it simply image is integral...
NEWS FLASH – Lucky Bloggers on the Cusp of Celebrity
I've been thinking about this for a while. Ever since I wrote about celebrity's who were taking to blogging as the latest and greatest thing, I knew it wouldn't be long before bloggers reached the heady heights of celebrity status. So this week when it was announced that Conde Nast's US magazine...
NAKED REVIEW – 5 Life Lessons from The Theory of Everything
The Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything has been tipped for Oscar glory. And why not? It's a captivating journey through the life of Stephen Hawking which has thus far been challenging, rewarding and unbelievably difficult in places. It's packed with talented actors (Eddie Redmayne as...
NAKED TRUTH – Future Job Interviews in 2025
In the future what do you think job interviews will look like? Will we be scoring job interviews based on our brand image? Our outfits? Or even our social media profile? Will you even have interviews? Given that in this day and age we're more concerned with reach than real life, how long is it...
Why Zoella’s Girl Online Backlash Shows Our Own Naivety
I love reading Popbitch. The weekly fix of celeb related gossip is enough to keep me sane. Last week it contained a little snippet about Vlogging sensation Zoella. The rising star had climbed further than the majority of her blogging peers to publish a book (I mean not exactly the first, there's...
NAKED TRUTH – Black Friday – Discount Savvy or Marketing Dream?
Last night outside Oxford Circus tube a man was holding a sign which said if we ask for penance then Jesus will save us. I couldn't help thinking he was probably the most sane person around. It was Black Friday after all, surely nothing can save us now?There were shoppers everywhere, the...
NAKED FEATURE – Reality TV – I’ve Got the X Factor Get Me Out Of Here
Ok so every year The Great British Bake Off, The Apprentice, X Factor, Strictly Come Dancing and I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here get set for their next series. The reality franchise is now big business, from humble low budget beginnings of Big Brother and Pop Idol to the huge productions and...
10 signs you work in Social Media & are a Superhero
If you work in social media, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Especially if you’ve been using social media for a little while and have a nagging feeling you’ve taken the wrong turn but aren't quite sure what that is. Whether you work for an agency, a brand, journalist, stylist, fashion house,...
Review – 10 Business Tips from Mary Katrantzou
Mary Katrantzou is fashion dynamite, the Greek born designer has taken the world by storm with her daring prints and sculpting feminine forms. I was lucky enough to join the audience at The Industry's latest talk at Conde Nast College last night when she was in conversation with fashion journalist...
News Flash – Social Media The New Fashion Trend
Social media is fast becoming THE biggest new trend in fashion for AW14. It started with journalists and bloggers sharing their FROW catwalk experiences from their mobiles at Fashion Week and gathered pace when Instagram was named the most influential form of social media by Bell Pottinger Wired...
NAKED TRUTH – Where Have All The Men Gone?
Last week, the GQ Men of the Year Awards took place in a glittering ceremony in London where 20 men and one woman received awards. Really TWENTY men? Are you sure? Wasn’t it just a Kim Kardashian West show? We also had the unnerving news that 101 celebrities (not Dalmatians) had their phones...
Rise of The Blogging Celebrity
Well it's all a load of goop isn't it? All these celebrities setting up blogs called Goop (Gwyneth Paltrow), Preserve (Blake Lively), Jam (No one yet, but they will, you just watch!) or whatever else. Just sweeping into an industry they know nothing about and stealing all the traffic with their...
Why the Ice Bucket Challenge is Marketing Genius
Want to see all the celebrities who have poured a bucket of ice cold water over their heads? Hell yeah! Want to see super, super A-listers doing it and then nominating even bigger stars to do it? Yes! Welcome to the Ice Bucket Challenge where The Hunger Games meets Total Wipeout in a show of...
How to Write a PR & Marketing CV
Ok, so you're hoping to land here and copy and paste a CV right? Sadly, it is not as easy as that, but thankfully there is plenty of advice out there on how to write a CV. So here are my top tips to help you when writing your Curriculum Vitae for job in PR & Marketing. Tip 1) Everyone is...
EXPOSED – Justin Bieber
This week I've been thinking about Controversial Men in History, but now I'm consider those modern bad boys who are hitting the headlines. Starting off with singer extraordinaire Justin Bieber. USP - Loyal Fanbase | Carefree Attitude | Believer | Child-star | Living the Dream '“I'm telling you,...
The Personal Branding of Kate Moss
After looking at some of the most Controversial Women in History, it's time to confront our modern day game-changers. This week I give you, Kate Moss. Rock Chick | Contradiction | Resilient | Super Model Famous Quotes: 'Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels' Kate Moss, interview with WWD, 2009...
Lady Gaga’s Personal Brand
The History of Controversial Women is always compelling from Eve in the Garden of Eden to Queen Cleopatra of Egypt. This week I've added Lady Gaga to my roster of controversial modern celebrity bad girls so let's explore her USP's and the brand she has created. Bad Girl USP - Gender Exploration...
Terry Mansfield – The Media of the Future
The future is looking like something from The Matrix movie mixed with a touch of Back to the Future right now. Google Glass is on the horizon and mobile marketing is gathering pace, so what does this mean for our media platforms? Print is declining and transforming rather than dying, Daily Mail...
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