Virginia Norris Launches London-based Agency, Virginia and Partners
A NEW DAY: London’s public relations network is getting more niche by the day.
Virginia Norris, a seasoned London-based publicist, has set up her own agency, Virginia and Partners, after splitting with the communications agency Aisle 8, which she cofounded with Lauren Stevenson 10 years ago.
“People want access to specialists and they want to work with specialists,” said Norris in an interview.
Her new communications agency will be solely fashion-focused and she’s taking a handful of clients with her including BoConcept, Bluebella, Dune London, Hush, Mango, Missoma, Oshadi Collective, Reiss, Sézane and Spring Studios.
Virginia Norris, founder of Virginia and Partners.
COURTESY
Norris will be joined by the same fashion team she oversaw at Aisle 8, including Ashleigh Hesp, who will be in a leadership role at the business.
Virginia and Partners will specialize in commerce-led brand strategies, influencer marketing, VIP talent placement, creative solutions, event conception and data insights.
“It’s tough at the moment and fashion is in a funny place. A lot of brands are looking at what they’re spending on and how they can consolidate what they’re doing with agencies. The world is [becoming] completely niche,” said Norris.
Her new agency is a response to that demand.
Norris, who is a Central Saint Martins graduate, started her career as a fashion assistant at The Fashion, a biannual magazine where Sarah Mower was the launch editor of in the 2000s.
The exterior of Missoma’s new Marylebone flagship.
Courtesy of Missoma / Michael Barry
After leaving the publishing world, she dipped her toes into public relations, where she worked her way up the ladder from agencies such as Exposure and Purple to working in-house at Diesel and Whistles, where she spent close to six years with the former chief executive officer Jane Shepherdson before starting Aisle 8 with Stevenson.
As reported, Norris and Stevenson said their split allows them to concentrate on their core strengths and respective fields of expertise. The two said they “remain each other’s biggest supporters and look forward to celebrating each other’s future successes.”
