Aaron: Charlotte, welcome to Build for Good.
Charlotte: Thank you.
Aaron: I want to start with a moment in time. It's 25 years ago and you're in a doctor's surgery with crippling pain in your stomach. You're sitting across from the doctor who tells you, "Sorry, you're just going to have to deal with the pain." Most people would accept what the doctor tells them. But you didn't. You walked out of there. And that moment became a decision, and that decision became a conviction. And that conviction has driven over 20 years of helping some of the world's most impactful health brands go on to change millions of lives.
You've spent over two decades finding health brands and communicating their story to help them scale their income and impact — from brands like Pukka Tea, which you helped grow until they got acquired by Unilever, to household names like Lisa Snowden, and brands like Carexico Collagen. You've got a real knack for finding passionate founders with a purpose and helping them go from humble beginnings to scale and impact.
And you're the most important guest I'm ever going to interview — because you're also my beautiful wife, and I've seen firsthand over the last eight years how you operate and work so hard to heal people through the brands you work with. It's your calling, and I feel honoured to be your husband.
What today is really all about is this: by the end of this episode, you're going to know how to communicate your brand to the world so you can scale your income and impact. Charlotte's going to walk us through what it actually takes — how to tell a story that connects, how to reach the people who need what you've built, and how to go from a brilliant idea and a brilliant product to a brand that the world knows, trusts, and loves.
Charlotte, let's start at the beginning. You're in a doctor's surgery and you're in pain. Take us back to that moment.
Charlotte: Yeah, I'd been in and out of the doctor's surgery for about seven years, complaining of various different ailments. I didn't know what it was and got pulled from pillar to post — until three years after that when I found out I had endometriosis.
But in that moment when the doctor said to me, "You're going to have to just learn how to deal with pain" — it was really about managing the pain rather than solving the problem. I sat there, walked out, and thought, "This is so bad. I want to stop this happening to women. I want to help change this."
After that moment I was working in advertising — above-the-line advertising. Cigarettes, alcohol, all different types of things. But I really wanted to get into health and nutrition, and I'd started reading more about it because I was trying to solve my own health problems.
I went to the library — way back when people did that before you could search the internet for everything — and I took out this many health books. Two of them made the most profound impact on my life. Marilyn Glenville's book — she's a women's health expert and has written every book on women's health conditions. And Patrick Holford, a leading nutritionist and author who changed the face of natural health many years ago by introducing people to supplementation, diet and lifestyle.
I read those books and they made such a profound impact that I decided those were two people I wanted to work with. At this point I was working in advertising — a completely different field. And then I read Anthony Robbins' book, Awaken the Giant Within. I was working in this advertising agency in Covent Garden with this boss who drove a Porsche, wore a suit, had a Rolex. And I just thought, I can't bear working for you.
I just quit my job that day. I literally said, "I don't want to work for you anymore," and left. I had no job to go to. I didn't know what I was going to do. But I knew one thing — I wanted to get into the world of health somehow.
Fast forward: I went to the biggest natural product show in the UK, Natural Products Expo, and there was one brand I made a beeline for — Solgar. At the time probably the biggest, most well-respected supplement brand in the UK. I found the main person there and just said, "How do I get a job with you?" A few months later, I applied. I'd never had any experience in sales, and I ended up working with them. I spent seven years with Solgar in sales, marketing and PR, and learned everything about nutrition. That was the beginning.
Aaron: It seems obvious to many people that there's something inside them that pulls them towards a certain industry — people call it their purpose or their calling. What was that for you?
Charlotte: I've never been a fan of injustice. Even at school, if some bigger kid was bullying a smaller kid, I would tell them off. I was always voted head of year because I was the one who would speak up for other people.
I think my career has really been driven by that feeling — there are people who are suffering, and how can we help them? So I think injustice drove me to it. That doctor's surgery moment — I'm like, I'm going to do everything I can to find another way. If you can't fix me, I will find another way.
From the playground to PR, basically. Helping people heal, not being told by the doctor, "You're just going to have to deal with this."
Aaron: I think there's something that moves your heart. Going back to Marilyn Glenville — you went to her office eventually?
Charlotte: Yes. My vision always was that by the time I was 30, I wanted to work in Soho — the creativity hub of the whole UK. I managed to get a job at the only place that was like a natural health PR agency. It was right in the middle of Soho. And I knew I wanted to get Marilyn Glenville as a client because she was the reason I got into natural health.
When I went to Marilyn's office, I walked into reception and there was a wall — about three metres long — covered in baby pictures. I said, "Those are lovely pictures. They're so cute." And she said, "These are all the babies that weren't meant to happen."
These were women who had had IVF maybe seven times, miscarried up to nine times, remortgaged their houses — tried everything. And they would go to Marilyn and go through the process. The injustice was that during IVF, they never talked about nutrition. They never talked about health. And Marilyn helped them.
That moment for me was like, wow. I focused solely on getting that message out there. And every time a magazine would get letters from readers saying, "This has changed my life — I finally got pregnant," I just loved it. That was a real buzz for me.
Aaron: You've got a personal story about your friend Dean, if you wouldn't mind sharing.
Charlotte: Yes. A friend of mine — his sister-in-law had miscarried seven times. Seven failed pregnancies. Young as well — early 30s. People always talked to me about health because it was what I lived and breathed. Dean rang me up and I said, "Why don't you send her to Marilyn?" Roll on — she had a lovely healthy baby who's now six or seven. Absolutely happy, healthy, perfect child.
It's simple changes, following expert advice, that can help bring a life into the world. What an amazing gift. And what I didn't like was that people go into a doctor's surgery and you're just given a prescription. You're never told, "Hey, stop this food, eat more of this, make sure your nutrition is good." It's broken.
I worked with Patrick Holford as well. I'd sometimes forget to go to the toilet or have a drink because I'd be reading his books. He did a book called Optimum Nutrition for the Mind and one called How to Quit Without Feeling. It was about the brain — the difference omega-3 and vitamin D can make for your mind. I've experienced depression in my life. No doctor ever said to me, "Have you thought about what you're eating? Take a fish oil. There are herbs that can calm your nervous system." That doesn't happen in this country.
Every time Patrick's book got published somewhere, I knew there was going to be someone who would hear it and it would change their life.
Aaron: And the pharmaceutical industry is not incentivised to heal people. You go to the doctors, they prescribe something — it's not always the solution, is it?
Charlotte: No. And I've always felt thankful for the frustration I feel. I found out I had endometriosis, and also that I was coeliac — I couldn't have gluten. I found this out after years of feeling unwell, through practitioners and holistic therapists. Within two weeks of giving up gluten, it was almost like: this is amazing. But finding gluten-free food was impossible — we're talking 20 years ago.
I remember sitting on an airplane being given a packet of grapes and a rice cake while everyone else had an abundance of lovely food. And I thought, "This is wrong." So I made it my mission to find the best gluten-free brands and normalise them. Gluten-free years ago was like — weirdos, that's what alternative people did. I wanted to find how we can make this mainstream for people.
I found that frustration, rather than just getting upset, and thought, "How can we do better here? What can we do that's going to make a difference?" That's when an idea can form. If you find yourself getting frustrated, that's when you should ask: where can I build? What can I do that's different?
Aaron: That's what's driven you — finding the injustice, back on the astroturf, to on planes finding nothing to eat as a coeliac, knowing there are millions of people with the same issues, and making it your mission to help bring these brands to light.
Charlotte: Exactly. And what really lights me up is when brands are growing, getting publicity, but above all — when a customer says, "You've changed my life." Like Ombar, one of the brands I've worked with. It's a dairy-free chocolate brand. Dairy-free chocolate was pretty revolting — you really felt like you were missing out. And then you have an Ombar and it tastes amazing. These kids that can't have dairy have got something. And brands love knowing that.
Aaron: Knowing you for nearly eight years, that's probably been the biggest driver for you — the people's lives that have been changed.
Charlotte: Yes. And I get a feeling when I meet a founder of a brand. My whole heart starts to almost open. I can feel it coming from my chest — almost a slight high. It's like my soul knows this person is good. Their stories. They genuinely care.
I've sat in meetings at agencies where people would come all the time saying, "I want to launch a health brand," and sometimes I couldn't even be in the same room because I knew they were lying. I knew their products weren't legit. And then you'd get one where I couldn't leave my seat. I remember a CBD brand coming in — he'd been helping children with epilepsy. I was crying my eyes out. When I'm crying talking to a potential client, you know they've got something good.
The people I work with — they're not willing to cut corners. They're not willing to use cheap fillers. They're not willing to make packaging that's going to harm the planet. They are there because they care. And I will not compromise on that with my business.
Aaron: Most of them also have something in common, from what I've seen.
Charlotte: They're camera shy. They don't like talking in public. They're very uncomfortable in front of a camera or in public spaces. And again, that's often a sign. Because someone who's normally super confident — someone from a tech background who's very on it — they do well because we all buy into confidence. But the founders I work with — they're experts. They're there because they've created something because they want to change the world. They're not in it for the glory. They're in it to help people.
Aaron: 100%. And that's what Build for Good is all about — helping inspire people to build something that matters and solve problems the world needs solved. Whether it's helping the astroturf be split between girls and boys — I'm joking — or building brands that actually go out and change the world.
Let's talk about PR. What is it for a brand?
Charlotte: PR stands for public relations. It's how the public perceive you — your relationship with the public. PR does get a bad name sometimes, because people say, "Oh, that's just spin." But really, it's your reputation with the public.
In health, your reputation is everything. You want to be seen as credible, trustworthy, authentic, delivering real results. So a brand needs to start with: how do you want to be perceived by the public? If you want to be seen as a luxury health brand, your photography, your writing, your placement — all of that needs to reflect that. If you want to be a country kitchen, mum-type product, that's a completely different approach. It all starts with knowing your customer and the relationship you're going to build with them through stories, through advertising, through every touchpoint of the company.
Aaron: So what would be the approach that anyone listening could use to go and communicate their brand, their mission to the world — to scale their sales and then their impact?
Charlotte: First of all, what makes you different? Let's say you're launching a matcha company. If you go to a journalist and say, "Hey, we launched matcha and this is what matcha is" — they know about matcha. So it needs to be: what is so different about yours? Maybe you give money to charity. Maybe you work with a unique supplier. Maybe you have an amazing founder story. Maybe it's helped you personally. PR is about storytelling. Journalists want a story to tell.
Also — be everywhere. Red Bull started like that. What they call guerrilla marketing. If you want to reach busy mums, where are they hanging out? Coffee shops. Do a popup. Say, "I'll work for free today — can I do a collab with you?" Be prepared to work for free. I've done loads of work for free. A lot of the brands I worked with did a lot for free in the beginning.
If you can't hire a PR company, find out who the key journalists are who write about your area. Go online, go to AI, find them. Then just say, "Hey, can I send you a product? Can I come to your office?" I used to turn up at journalists' offices with deliveries. Be bold, be out there.
And be patient. If you gift a journalist a product, don't be messaging them two days later asking, "When are you writing about my product?" Give it at least six days. It's not sales — it's storytelling.
Aaron: Walk us through what would happen if somebody came to you and said, "We want to work with you — we're a small brand, we've just started, we've got an amazing story. How do you get us from there to growing our impact and income through great PR?"
Charlotte: I'll talk about Ombar because it's a brilliant example. I met them at a yoga show in London. Richard, the founder, and his girlfriend Amanda had this little stand. They were sampling and I've never tasted dairy-free chocolate like it. I had about four or five pieces just to make sure. I said to Richard, "Give me six weeks. I want to PR your product — it's amazing."
He had something unique. He knew it, but he didn't know how to get it out there. So first: is your product good? Not because your mum told you — because of real market research. Get honest feedback from as many people as possible.
Also make sure your price point is right. Tastes good, product's good, packaging's good. Can it be delivered without being broken? Make sure everything is perfect before you go to press.
Have your social media ready. Have your website ready. Have testimonials. Be press-ready — overprepared. Because if your story gets picked up and people come to your Instagram and there are two random posts, you've wasted the opportunity.
Then you need to generally write a press release. And there are three things a health brand always wants to have. First, your experts — who is credible behind this? A nutritionist, a scientific director, studies? Second, a powerful case study. Journalists like stories. "A lady who was too tired to go to the gym, gave up work, took this supplement, and now she's back at the gym, lost three stone, and she's got a new boyfriend" — that's a story. Get as many of those as you can. Hundreds of testimonials, because the proof becomes irrefutable. Third, founder stories — if you're the founder who's had a massive health problem and you've found a solution, share your story. People want to hear it.
Aaron: And what's the biggest mistake people make when they've got a new company and want to go and change the world?
Charlotte: Spending too much money too soon. They've gone too hard too quickly. They've got investors, they think they're going big. They hire all these celebrities, do a massive press launch, go everywhere — and then they've just gone because they can't afford to keep going.
You need investors who really believe in what you're doing, who are prepared to go through the rough times. It's like a relationship — you're going to have amazing days and difficult days, and you need people who will stay when the bad days come.
The other big mistake — they get so big that they get detached from their customers. They're not on the ground anymore. Stay connected. Send personal letters from you. Keep customers updated. People buy into that founder and their vision. So even when you've got a massive marketing team and a PR agency, get in with your customers, stay at the front line, and keep improving.
Aaron: Let's talk about finding holistic solutions. For somebody who's got a health problem and is not sure where to start — not just going straight to a pharmaceutical — how would you explain it to them?
Charlotte: First of all — don't become your diagnosis. If you get a diagnosis, don't make it your identity. That's really important.
Also, don't be angry with the doctors. They are not trained on nutrition or herbal medicine or any sort of alternative in this country. No lifestyle. No diet. That's just how it is. So don't expect them to have all the answers.
Listen to the voice in your head. The one that says something's wrong, or this doesn't feel right. Get quiet. Sleep on it. Pray on it. Ask for that wisdom from within — it will come up.
Journal on it. Keep a diary of when you get affected by things — you might see patterns. Notice: I always get anxiety after X, or when I eat these foods I wake up at 3am. We look so much externally for answers when so much of it is inside.
Go to your GP first and ask for everything you can get done — bloods, scans, tests. Get the data. Then take it to a practitioner — a naturopath, a nutritionist — who will sit down and ask you loads of questions. Then you've got information to work with.
And the basics: good sleep, reducing stress, getting your body moving, daylight, vitamin D, whole foods. Don't get overwhelmed. Find what you can stick to. If it's a 20-minute walk each day, start there.
Aaron: And before we end — that feeling. You must have felt something that told you health was where you wanted to go. What was the signal?
Charlotte: Sit with your friends and family and ask, "What do you think I'm passionate about? What do I talk about the most? What lights me up?" Because it's that thing that lights you up and excites you — the why — that tells you.
If you can't change your job yet, find a way to get into that world anyway. I wanted a health food shop but I couldn't afford it. So I worked weekends at one. I was being paid £5 an hour — I wasn't doing it for the money. I was doing it to learn, to be amongst it, to be in that environment. From the moment I walked into a health food shop, it was like magic. These little bottles that would help people. I was so excited. Every lunch break I would go in and say, "What does that product do? What does that product do?"
Find that thing that lights you up because that's going to be your moat in the business. That passion — just like the passion you've got for helping brands and healing people — that is something you just can't manufacture. And if you keep following that, even if it takes weeks or years, you'll eventually get there.
Aaron: My beautiful wife has been amazing. Thank you for sharing your passion and your calling with the world — and for helping millions of people through the brands you've worked with over the years. It's been inspiring to see it. Long may that continue.