It was not about being brave, which we were told many times by colleagues and friends, it was about wanting to be independent, wanting to choose, making our own decisions and having the autonomy to maintain a good work/life balance.

Running a business is tricky and rewarding, you have to take a punt, grow and change, be ready to alter your plans, jump in feet first, create opportunities and keep it fresh.

In 2004, we sat down at our dining room tables and launched FrancisKnight. Our first year or two alternated between each other’s houses, progressing to hot desking at local authorities and then to parish councils, dependent on the projects we were working on. Bubbling underneath was always the desire to have our very own space.

By early 2008 we had found it, The PowerHub, a large industrial unit with Piscean dreams to turn it into artists’ studios, a gallery and co working space. With all our tenacity, we had the architectural plans drawn up, we secured the funding and negotiated a 5-year rent free lease. We were ready to sign. But along came the 2008 crash and with it the building went into administration and scuppered our plans. With a heavy heart, we licked our wounds, gave the funding back and revised our plans, we knew it was time to find our own office and set our sights on finding it.

In late 2008, we ventured into the world of TV at Maidstone Studios with the offer of a shared space with Pillory Barn, an incredible invitation we couldn’t refuse. New clients were keen to visit us, who would they bump into at the canteen? Who would they see while waiting in the foyer? What latest show was being recorded? Meetings were frequent and projects began to grow. As our portfolio of work expanded, we progressed to our own office, and became neighbours to Vic & Bob, often hearing the giggling from their next-door shenanigans.

Times were good, but it became evident that we enjoyed hearing the creativity and wanted to surround ourselves with more. Meeting artist Cathy Rogers on another project introduced us to an artist collective ‘Making Art Work’. We collected our office belongings and moved into an experimental space, with our door open to the artists in the building. This energy revived us again and we stayed for 6 months until the landlord wanted the building back for redevelopment.

Whilst looking for the next chapter along came Michael Temali-Smith from MidKent College, who invited us to join his team based both in the college and later in a shared office space. He became an informal business mentor to us, helping us rebrand to become a ‘public art consultancy’ and with this small shift we focused our minds on new clients, specifically housing developers and regeneration teams in local authorities. Then followed the days of cold calling, follow up calls, more cold calling, emails (even letters) and networking. We were determined and were in it for the long game, our patience and consistency have been our friends too. Many of those cold calls are now regular repeat clients.

In 2015 an opportunity for a new co working space appeared and we applied for a two (wo)man office at the Business Terrace. Over the 5 years we were based there we moved around sharing with other businesses, and thoroughly enjoyed meeting all the entrepreneurial businesses based there. Shout out to Sean Henry, PR Academy, Roger Williams, Rise Communications, Sarah MacDonald, Creation, Tunde Daczo and Ben Towers. It was flexible, affordable and friendly.

Present day and post pandemic we know we can operate our business anywhere and this approach continues. Often, we Zoom all day, as if sitting side by side in a real office. Sometimes we do share a real office, in Maidstone or Whitstable. It doesn’t matter, it works. Plus we have great support from Alison Quinn Virtual Assistant and Anwen Cooper at Get Fruitful Marketing.

After 20 years we understand that running a small business is tricky but rewarding, you have to take a punt, grow and change, be ready to alter your plans, jump in feet first, create opportunities and keep it fresh and then REPEAT………watch this space…..

And if you would like to have a conversation with us, get in touch, we are friendly fish.