A business consultancy for those in the arts and creative industries.

SERVICES

It starts with your next idea, your talent and your grit. But what next? It is my belief that as a creative entrepreneur, founder or leader, having clarity of vision and of purpose will lead to clarity of action.

I work with creative entrepreneurs to carve out creative and commercial strategies across all areas of the business, brand or enterprise. Working on a project basis, I take a bespoke approach to each client. A self proclaimed optimist, every interaction with me offers ideas, energy and insight.

  • Working with clients to develop a comprehensive guide and action plan for the next chapter of the business. This looks at vision, values, what’s for sale, the market place, customers, sales strategy, finances and operations.

  • Advising on a specific topic, opportunity or challenge. I work with clients on a range of topics across the creative and the commercial. This includes, but is not limited to, sales strategy, finances, building a team, leadership, competitor analysis, business plan reviews.

  • Many clients opt for a ‘little and often’ approach, a thought partner. This advice is focused momentum and accountability. We work with the needs of the business or practice to execute the plan or vision for the future. Many clients work quarterly or monthly.

  • I take on a variety of speaking opportunities whether live interviews, panel host or as part of a panel. I also take writing commissions relating to the concept and practicalities of being a creative entrepreneur.

SELECTED CLIENTS

Curation

Design

Fashion & Jewellery

Fine Art

Fine Craft

Interiors & Gardens

Palefire

Plum & Ashby

Rachel Entwistle

Scribble & Daub

Sophie Breitmeyer

Straw London

Studio Faeger

Studio George

Studio Peake

Tabi Jackson Gee

Twig Hutchinson

Ben Prescott Design

Camilla Wordie

Emilie Pugh

Emily Ponsonby

Foster & Gane

Hum London

If Only If

Kitten Grayson

Jess Wheeler

Life Of Ease

Lottie Delamain

Nancy Nicholson

PODCAST

UP WITH THE LARK AND

Sandrine Zhang Ferron, Vinterior

Leadership

In this episode, a topic that creeps in to most of the work that I do with founders. It is leadership. Are you a leader? What ‘qualifies’ you to be one? What arena, idea, business or group of people are you leading? What is your leadership style? Is it working? And why does it matter? In the social media age, spend a great deal of time discussing ‘following’ and ‘followers’. But I wonder if we spend enough time considering ‘leading’ and ‘leaders’.

It brings me real joy to say that today we are going to adventure through this very concept with someone more than qualified to do so. Sandrine Zhang Ferron is the founder of Vinterior. This vintage furniture site is an excellent ‘what if we could…’ put into practice and I can’t imagine you haven’t browed its pages at some point. It is sustainability as a doing word, a verb rather than a concept or aspiration or guilty niggle. It has purpose and style woven in and Sandrine has big ambitions for its future. We are going to consider what Sandrine learnt from her years working in finance, how she got the idea off the ground, what it means to be a leader in your industry, a leader as a founder and a leader of a team. 

ABOUT

Up With The Lark

Up With The Lark was launched in 2015 by Calandre Orton. It is a business consultancy for those in the arts and creative industries. Up With The Lark clients want to be encouraged and challenged to start, refine, grow or elevate their creative businesses or careers. Calandre works with founders, entrepreneurs and brands to propel creative talent forwards, develop profitable business models and celebrate the successful marriage of creativity and commerce.

It is Calandre’s belief that the key to running a successful creative business is clarity. Whether in her capacity as a consultant focused on strategy or a mentor working on mindset, Calandre’s goal is always clarity of vision, purpose and action.

Calandre has always worked where the creative meets the commercial - as an art and media lawyer, a studio manager, a commercial director and a business consultant. And so, as a consultant, Calandre provides invested but objective observations, pithy insights and expert advice. A self proclaimed optimist, every interaction with Calandre offers ideas, energy and insight. Up With The Lark is not about a ‘one size fits all’ approach. Instead the focus is on each client’s specific talents and industry, aspirations and version of success.