An Interview with Helena, founder of Lover Management
Founder of bespoke management agency specializing in brand partnerships, growth strategy, PR, creative direction, and event production, Helena Kate Whittingham, whose clients include The White Pube, Beam me up Softboi, & Poundland Bandit will be discussing how it was to work in the art world. She will reveal what’s made her choose to run a business, as well as how she’s changing the landscape of events and talent management during a global pandemic, where IRL events aren’t possible.
Tell us about your background
Born in Middlesbrough in 1994, I studied Fine Art and my first jobs were invigilation in galleries, before moving to London from Leeds, where I moved ‘up the ranks' to an assistant curator. I did an alternative MA at School of the Damned - a self-run ‘alternative’ art school, then moved away from art and worked as a celebrity DJ manager for half a year before setting up Lover Management in 2019. Alongside being a manager for some incredible talent, I'm a model and an occasional writer. I love to have my fingers in many pies (and sometimes it's a necessity).
What made you want to set up Lover Management?
As above, After a couple of years in galleries, I was poached to work for a celebrity and started up Lover after 6 months there. I was really enjoying the entertainment industry and I wanted to create bespoke management for creatives which I loved. I have always been part of a few different scenes, always been freelance, and have had many side hustles, from cat sitting, to writing, press, and modeling. It didn't seem that much of a risk to me as I'm used to working alone and motivating myself.
What is Lover Management?
I think it would be easier to say what Lover is not haha. Lover is everything, a flexible management company, and a creative agency. We work closely with our clients to produce intelligent and unique creative outputs on a case-by-case basis. Mainly we are specializing in ‘all things content’ and we are currently working with a diverse group of zeitgeists, cultural commentators, content creators, DJs, producers, and other creatives. Our work includes talent management, brand partnerships, growth strategy, media relations, styling, creative direction, event production, and casting.
Working predominantly within music, communications, and entertainment industries globally, we are committed to creating tailored ways of working with people who inspire us most. Our tagline is ‘lover is your biggest cheerleader’ which is something I stand by, we have a bespoke approach to our work and want to help our clients in any way we can. It happened naturally that brands would rather pay us to do it all in-house as we have a wealth of creatives surrounding us at all times, and connecting people is innate within me, I've always been very good at ‘oh you should meet so and so’.
Tell us more about brand partnerships; what makes a good one?
Great question. With our clients, I’d say we are quite particular with who we work with. I think sometimes you can see influencer pages saturated with collaborations and whilst yes it's lucrative, it's boring, and your followers don't want to see that. IG especially is far too much of an advertising space now. What makes a great brand partnership ‘good’ is where it truly makes sense for the talent audience and the brand client, for example, Beam Me Up Softboi x Unbound has always been well received because the brand and collaborator just make sense together, and they're really clever and unique outputs.
How do you approach brands that you want to work with?
A lot of the time it's organically. Sometimes they reach out to us or vice versa, it depends on the client and trajectory.
Which artists do you represent and how/ How did you meet them/ how did you get started?
It’s changed a lot really, I've had people dip in and out but that's the nature of it and some long-standing. PoundlandBandit was my first client. We met through friends and then realised we could work together well alongside record companies for songs of the day and brand deals for memes etc. Beam me up Softboi seemed like a natural progression from then, and they reached out to me. Swipes4daddy is newly on the roster and happened in a similar way too. The White Pube was great because I’ve known about them, and support them since conception, and they are rooted in art too so it's a nice crossover for me. I've been a big fan of DJs like Nadine Artois for ages and I still get goosebumps when they play, so it's happened all quite organically. And Club Quarantine had quite a lot of my talent play over the pandemic and then I approached them about managing them. Some people dip in and out like NSC and Balamii, and have a couple of newer people on the scene too. I'm honored to be working with such incredible people.
How do you help them?
Bespoke flexible management, means that it's more built on trust than big scary contracts, which fits in and is key with our “Lover” business name and brand. I want to be the non- dickhead manager. We've paired my talent with the likes of Chakrubs, Unbound, Feeld, Goodhood, Nike, Nandos, Somerset House Studios, Wolf & Badger, London Fashion Week, Instagram, Bumble, NTS to name a few...and record companies like Polydor, RCA, Relentless, Domino, Dirty Hit, Caroline, Colors x Studios, Island, Atlantic, and September. We've hosted and played parties and events all over London.
The White Pube for British Vogue
What would be your dream collaboration?
Dream collaborations always consist of working on a retainer basis or repeat business as long term can be key. But we're working on a lot of IRL events now, so the goals are curating stages for festivals, bigger and better collabs, hosting dinners for brands, things of that nature. Dream collaborations are the ones that make sense for our talent.
What tips do you have for anyone who wants to get noticed?
If you mean in general, then it's the boring answer of being consistent in your content and seeing what gets the best engagement. It's much easier to gain a following on Tiktok, this helps so much with a brand deal. Interesting question, and it depends on the context. If you mean by Lover, I'm always happy to have a chat. It's not really on the follower base for me, it's just on how much I vibe with your work or see if I can help.
How do you amass so many social links? Key tips?
I'm Northern so I'll talk to anyone! I think it's the same as above where It's quite innate in me, but I'm also just excessively online too so I pick up things quite a lot there whether that's a job or just general info. I wouldn't say this is a tip though.
How do you manage clients’ needs with Lovers’ personal growth?
They are symbiotic!
What changes do you foresee in the industry?
For IRL events, we want to see covid safety obviously and support for our industry, financial and otherwise. In regards to socials, everyone seems to be stepping away from IG now and onto Tiktok. Tiktok is a full fridge.
How has the pandemic affected your business, how have things changed now we’re coming out of lockdown(s)?
We stopped doing IRL events obviously, we were just in survival mode for a while. little bits here and there. We did a rebrand and had a lovely rest, and now we're back with a vengeance with IRL mainly focusing on 2022, and it's exciting. Don't want to be one of those ‘big things coming…’ but… big things are coming.
As the mother of Lover, how does the rebrand make you feel, and who did it?
With lockdowns and reaching our second birthday, a rebrand felt like a good fit. It was done by the incredible Jackson Deans, I only gave him a few parameters and he really ran with it. I recommend and trust him, and he did an amazing job.
What have you got planned for 2022; and please can we come?
We're focusing on a festival tour with Club Quarantine, lots more writing for Iona David at Beam Me Up Softboi, More brand collabs, more IRL events, and lots of fun, of course, you’re on the guestlist!
How did the pitch deck that we created for you last year help with your business’ goals and objectives?
Brand identity is important so it was great to have a uniform deck that I can send out when pitching to clients. We love it, thank you!
Finally, what advice do you have for other creatives who want to pursue a career in talent management?
Get a really good mentor, and DM me.
