Lucy Baker's Brouha Journey
It’s hard to believe Brouha is turning 20! As we each take a look back at our personal journeys and the part they play in the Brouha we know today, reflecting on mine brings a smile to my face, because of how it all started.
In January, I will be celebrating 19 years with Brouha. Brought onboard to join Fiona Lund and Helen Savage after trading for a year, as they felt it was time to grow and develop the Brouha offering – and apparently, I was the person to help do it! But my first toe in the Brouha water was the November prior to my official appointment. I was invited to what was described to me as ‘the Oscars for the fenestration industry’, the G Awards 2026. This would provide an opportunity for me to be introduced to key customers, with the idea of laying some foundations for our working relationships going forward.
The evening started out well and a fun time was being had by all, that is until (unsurprisingly, after a few drinks) I said something that I thought was quite an innocent statement to someone, that was not received in the way it was intended…. I sobered up quite swiftly, as things almost went very awry! Something that’s best described as a misunderstanding of Bristolian dialect, that meant the next morning I was making a call to apologise to one of the said key clients I was supposed to be making a good impression with! A genuinely casual remark on my part, but seemingly highly offensive to the recipient. To this day, I’m still very aware of the language barrier when talking to anyone from the Midlands!
I’m truly grateful that Fiona saw the funny side of the situation and didn’t immediately retract her employment offer and fortunately the client forgave me for my honest mistake too once the apparent misdemeanour was explained, so it all worked out ok in the end – but it’s something we still reflect on and thankfully laugh about now, as it could’ve all ended up very differently.
Glasstec 2016
I don’t want to say that set the tone for the years that followed, but in a way, it’s very representative of how we’ve worked so well together over such a long period of time. We always try to do our best, approaching things with honesty and integrity, but in the fast paced, client focussed and deadline driven environment that is Public Relations, even with the best of intentions we can sometimes make mistakes, because we’re only human. What’s important is that, when those situations arise – which are thankfully few and far between - we deal with it appropriately and move on. It has helped to have sense of humour at times too!
We’re lucky to have represented some brilliant organisations, led by great people and over the years there have been many stand out moments, which we are grateful to have been involved with. We’ve been trusted to organise some key events, been invited to join many more and have had lots of laughs along the way. You have to enjoy what you do and who you do it with because if you don’t, you don’t do it for very long. I guess that explains why I’m almost at my 19th work anniversary!
Over the years, the Brouha offering has evolved and diversified into the Brouha it is today. It was never our intention to grow the team, whereby a multi-layer structure would remove us from the day job, the intension was to remain small and boutique, so we could each remain client facing and hands on with what we do. Although the original team of two has grown into a team of six, it has done so by adding to the core strategic comms experience, with our own in-house graphic designer and videographer. The skillset has broadened so our need to outsource has reduced, which allows us to be more in control of entire campaigns and schedules, which streamlines our approach.
Despite these changes, the core set of principles Brouha was founded on 20 years ago, remain the same; to work with energy and passion, build strong and lasting partnerships, show enthusiasm and drive and bring specialist knowledge to deliver strategic communications. You could argue the subject matter across social housing, new build, fenestration and construction is not the most exciting, but we bring a fresh and fun approach which our clients appreciate, and we’re excited to see what the future has in store.
One more thing to add as I reflect – I feel inclined to include a couple of Fiona’s favourite notable moments of mine. Coming in quite high on the list has to be the night I wore open toed shoes, on a chilly night in December, to an Ice Bar in London – so I spent most of the night crouching down in order to prevent frostbite (photographic evidence attached)! Also, a firm favourite of hers, has to the continued use of my GCSE German oral exam piece. For those of you that she has forced me to recite it to over the years, on numerous occasions (most of you being German speaking as your first language), I apologise!
Happy 20th Birthday Brouha! Here’s to the next 20!
Ice Bar - London