Perth marketing agency boss Tricia Fox was always destined to run campaigns that make an impact – that was clear as early as her Perth Academy school days.
When editor of the school newspaper, The 19a Times, she led and won a mission to allow girls to wear trousers.
And almost three decades later she is still running campaigns as the founder and chief executive of Perth-based agency Cunningly Good.
Tricia Fox – mad about marketing
Tricia got her first taste of marketing when she was a student at Aberdeen University.
She designed a poster for a theatre club show of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest that was cool enough for students to rip them down and hang on their bedroom walls.
When she wasn’t persuading friends to hand out flyers for the theatre club, she was on the phone drumming up adverts for The Gaudie, the university newspaper.
After her English degree, she did a marketing masters at Strathclyde University. She then started a PhD in branding and identity management.
But her number of academic qualifications led to her being told she was overqualified for most jobs.
Tricia said: “I ended up falling into management consultancy and I had amazing opportunities. I was flying everywhere and consulting with massive blue chip companies like Johnson and Johnson, Scottish Widows and Bank of Scotland – while living back in Perth with mum and dad.
“But it was also very demanding – physically and mentally. I was travelling constantly, getting two or three hours of sleep a night. I was so tired, not well. Finally I thought ‘I can’t do this anymore’.
“In 2002, I handed in my notice without another job to go to.”
Phone call was the start of business
But Tricia wasn’t out of work for long. The day after she handed in her notice she had a call from a contact in Aberdeen asking if she wanted to be involved in a public relations campaign.
Suddenly she was in business for herself.
“Unlike the fable of the entrepreneur, I was not filled with ideas to set up a business at the age of 26,” she said.
“But I drove to Aberdeen, got myself a contract and had to figure how to get their money into my bank account. I was told to set up a business.
“Business Gateway suggested I do six months of research and write a plan. I replied ‘I’ve got three weeks so what’s the potted version?’”
The birth of Volpa
She named her business Volpa – close to the Latin word for Tricia’s surname, Fox.
She slowly grew her business by attending networking events and she is one of the earliest adopters of business networking platform Linkedin.
Tricia took on most things she was offered, with a varied mix of marketing, consulting and press work.
She got busier and busier and, after two years, she took on her first member of staff.
She said: “I had been mulling the idea of taking someone on. A few days later a CV appeared through my letterbox from a marketing administrator looking for a part time job.
“We both liked Madonna and that was grounds for employment alone.
“Bringing on your first employee is the biggest decision you’ll ever make as an entrepreneur.
“Looking back, I completely over thought it and worried about things that would never materialise.”
Highs and lows in rollercoaster ride
Volpa grew into one of the largest marketing agencies in Tayside, reaching a total of 14 staff prior to Covid.
Among its clients is the Enchanted Forest attraction in Perthshire which it has promoted since 2008.
But Tricia says the growth and success has never been in a straight line with many ups and downs over the years.
She said: “It is two steps forward, three steps back sometimes. It’s a constant evolution. If you like certainty, running a business is certainly not for you.
“We’ve had multiple recessions and challenges but also massive highs. We’ve won awards, we’ve seen our work on pretty big campaigns. Some clients have done so well their businesses were sold.”
85% of business lost at start of Covid
And the biggest dip on that rollercoaster ride was the Covid pandemic.
The majority of Volpa’s clients were in sectors most exposed to the pandemic – major events, tourism and leisure.
There were many times when she thought her business wouldn’t make it through.
She said: “Within six weeks, we lost 85% of our business. It was really tough.
“Everyone said the same thing – you guys will be alright – but really it was just horrific.
“I furloughed almost everyone and flexi-furlough was a godsend. Without that we wouldn’t have made it through – it was a really testing time.”
The impact of the Covid years is still being felt by the business, which today has six staff and a new name.
New name and new direction
Volpa changed its name to Cunningly Good in 2021. Tricia said it reflected the change in the business coming out of the pandemic.
“When you’ve been knocked that badly, it’s not been an immediate recovery,” she said.
“We’ve expanded into different industries including more public sector work which is more stable.
“It still feels intense. I don’t feel I’ve had time to properly reflect yet. Normally after a crisis you have a bit of time but there’s just never been let up.”
At a time the business was going through upheaval, the team achieved a career highlighting winning a Chartered Institute of Public Relations gold award in 2021. They repeated this triumph last year.
Meanwhile, Tricia, a coffee lover, decided to start another business with her husband Ian Christie to take advantage of more people working from home during the pandemic.
Mhor Coffee is an ecommerce platform that delivers artisan coffees. It also opened a café in Perth’s Kinnoull Street, which closed in August 2022.
Tricia said: “The online side is still going. Coffee is a hugely diverse and exciting product – there’s no excuse for bad coffee.
“In the pandemic, I kicked into entrepreneur mode. The thinking was we had empty offices and people were ordering a lot online. We knew our coffee consumption had gone through the roof.
“I have a hundred ideas for businesses a day. If I have an idea that pops into my head and it’s still there the next day, I buy the domain name. Mhor Coffee was a domain name I registered years ago.”
Tricia Fox ready for what’s happens next
So what lessons has Tricia learned from her years in business and what is she still hoping to achieve?
Tricia, who plays double bass in Perth Symphony Orchestra, admits she doesn’t have a concrete plan for what’s coming next.
“I am a planner but I don’t have a plan,” she laughs.
“The pandemic has been so testing that I haven’t had the opportunity to look and imagine the possibilities – but it’s coming, I can feel it.
“Our business is changing all the time. AI is having an impact. We’ve seen a definite decline in social media reach and engagement over the last three years.
“Meanwhile, mail and text messages have made a bit of a comeback recently. TV advertising has also had a renaissance.
“We are well placed to navigate this new hybrid world.
“What I’m saying is I’m not done yet. My simple plan is to grow.
“The main thing I’ve learned as a business owner is not to overthink things. I think a lot of people worry about things that rarely materialise and sometimes you just need to get going. You’ll figure things out as you go along.
“Everything I’ve done I should have done earlier. Ignore the voice in your head that’s always looking at the downside. Always be moving forward and don’t ever stop.”
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