September: Celebrating two years of freelancing

Ten years ago this month, I moved to London to become a copywriter. Tomorrow marks two years since I ‘went freelance’. 

‘Went freelance’ doesn’t sound grammatically correct does it? But it feels right; like ‘went rogue’, ‘went for it’, and ‘went my own way’.

I don’t want to sound cheesy, but becoming a freelancer has been everything I thought it would be and more….

More brands? Tick.

I’ve worked on some really fun retail projects, both for retailers and the brands being stocked on their shelves, like Barcardi, Border Biscuits, Bombay Sapphire, Baileys – and many more brands not beginning with a B.

More variety? Tick. 

While fashion, food and beauty will always be my first loves, it’s been refreshing to work in new sectors too, from finance, tech and B2B to healthcare and social care. And after years of working agency side, I’m glad I’ve had the chance to work in-house at Cath Kidston, Deliveroo and TK Maxx.

More freedom? Tick. 

The flexibily of freelance life has allowed me to spend more time with friends and family. I’ve worked remotely from my Mum’s house in Manchester, my friend’s apartment in Paris and my cousin’s cottage in the Lake District. (The one cliché I’ve yet to indulge in is working from a cute café – I can’t shake the feeling that someone is going to run in and rob my laptop.)

In short, I’m really glad I became a freelancer. If anyone out there is thinking of trying freelance, I would say you HAVE to give it a go, or else you’ll always wonder what might have been… and it might turn out to be the best decision you ever made.