Here at Launch Group we realise that December is typically a gluttonous month focused around consuming vast quantities of food and drink! So, in order to ‘do our bit’ and give back to charity we decided to host a Charity Coffee Morning this week to raise money for The Royal British Legion, one of the most prominent and newsworthy charities and also a client of ours.

In order to get as many people involved as possible, we asked all Launchers to get their baking hats on and create something delicious that would sell in the masses. And we weren’t disappointed….Amongst our baked beauties we had a delicious and handmade coffee cake, decadent (and giant) chocolate brownies, crammed with dark chocolate pieces, and a variety of cookies and cupcakes decorated beautifully with glitter.

As with all sweet treats, the baked goods went down very well with the team, and everyone was very generous. Launch Group managed to raise a very respectable £51.00 for the charity. Eating all those cakes seems all the more acceptable now…

Well, we are all back in one piece and life has returned to normal at Launch HQ following the excitement of this year’s end of year conference. From ‘Bus Bingo’ to traipsing across the countryside behind dark glasses (!) we all had a great time.

The team showed their usual Launch spirit, singing and dancing until the early hours – with even the bar manager commenting that he didn’t think the Cotswolds have ever seen such a party!

As well as having a good time, it was a great opportunity to reflect on the past year and look ahead to the coming months. We heard from Andy (Director of Integration) and Rich (Head of Digital Strategy & Creative) about their new piece of thought leadership, ‘Optimised PR’ – more on this soon I am sure. We also unveiled our new look benefits package, with highlights including days off for charity work, sabbaticals and a new personal wellbeing budget for all Launchers to help them get the work/life balance just right.

Long presentations, poor catering and no fun? I must be referring to the traditional idea of an annual company conference…

…but not at Launch Group!

Our End of Year meeting, held annually in August, is a real highlight in our busy calendars. And this year it is gearing up to be bigger and better than ever before.

The details have been a carefully guarded secret since we announced the dates earlier this year, and since then, the Training Team have been busy creating a two day event that will see us travel over 190 miles and consume more than 125 meals between us! It is a great opportunity to get together and share the year’s successes and plan for the coming months. Our consultants work incredibly hard to produce brilliant results for our clients, so this gives us a chance reflect, relax and get motivated for the busy months leading us into the Autumn.

Watch this space for photos, conference gossip and some new faces as we celebrate another fantastic Launch year!

I have always loved singing, and even though my kids will tell you that I can’t sing very well, I refuse to believe it!

One of my goals for a long time was to join a choir, and the only thing putting me off was the ‘audition’ aspect – especially as I didn’t know if I was an alto, soprano, upper alto…again my family would probably say baritone. So I was excited when my sister, Janet, emailed me to say that she had just seen a report on the BBC’s Evening News about the new trend that was taking the country by storm – the Rock Choir. We quickly signed up for a ‘taster session’ and have been hooked ever since. I’d urge anyone to give it a go.

Since joining we have performed at the London Marathon, at the Hammersmith Apollo and have even had our own show at the Shaw Theatre. We also collectively released an album that reached number 8 in the album charts! And, as LG’s FD, Philip, will confirm, we also made it on television (though, much to his disappointment, we didn’t make any money out of it – the enjoyment and sense of satisfaction made it worthwhile)

The success of the Rock Choir is such that I’m beginning to think it must be some kind of cult….not that I care, it makes me happy! 

So, it’s been just over a year since I returned from my travels around Asia and joined Launch Group in January 2009. All I can say is that I don’t think any other agency could’ve pulled me out of my post-travelling depression so quickly, and that a LOT has happened in those 12 months.

From winning fantastic new business – hello Advance VisionCare! – to doing excellent client work – Butlins Ocean Hotel launch, Jameson Cult Film Club, and Disney Twinned to name just a few – it’s been a rollercoaster year here at Launch Towers and I can’t wait for the next one.

Now, I admit that I didn’t actually work on the Disney campaign personally, but as one of the agency’s most successful projects we were all incredibly excited about the amazing results. I even called fellow Launcher, Elodie, and left her a far-too-over-excited voicemail when I saw the coverage on Jonathan Ross before realising that I was watching it on Sky+ and that she’d already known about it for two days. Oh well, she appreciated the Sunday morning call. I think.

Day-to-day work aside, we’ve had two unforgettable company parties – Summer and Christmas – where we all witnessed some very questionable dance moves, but I guess the less said about those the better. What happens in Soho, stays in Soho, after all…

So, what’s on the agenda for 2010? I for one am getting married – hurray!

And now that I’ve started planning The Big Day I’ve noticed that maybe us PR professionals don’t approach things in quite the same way as others. My laid back Devon family seemed to be shocked at my almost military-like approach to the preparations. From my time-maximising schedule of venue viewings to the eight tab excel spreadsheet that has become known as ‘The Wedding Bible’, the organisation skills picked up from years of juggling clients, suppliers, colleagues, and everything else look like they’re about to come in very handy indeed. I’m just going to have to try to remember not to send my parents a weekly update report, schedule regular conference calls or ask them to attend monthly status updates. Although, now that I mention it, that does sound like quite a good idea…

Bridezilla? Moi?!

Once again it’s that time of the year that we all brace ourselves for. The dreaded winter!  With the dark mornings and cold weather, the official start of winter is soon to be upon us. It’s time to don the scarves and gloves, turn up the heating and dig out the SAD light for that daily dose of vitamin D. Many of us look back over the summer months longingly…

However, winter isn’t all doom and gloom. There are definitely some cheeky pleasures that come with it…

December is the season to be jolly

Who doesn’t love Christmas? It’s the time for festive cheer, lots of guiltless, calorific food and a whole host of nights out – and all in the name of the season.

During this period people seem generally to be in better spirits (probably because they know a hard earned break is on the way!), and there is always a Christmas party or social gathering to attend, which is organised under the guise of ‘Christmas,’ but is really just another reason to go out and be merry.

It’s also a great excuse to shop! You can kill two birds with one stone as you shop for yourself whilst shopping for your nearest and dearest’s Christmas presents. It’s the perfect arrangement. 

Furthermore, as our evenings are plummeted into darkness, we can look forward to the warm glow of the Christmas decorations lighting up our skylines, shops and homes.  Thus making the dark evenings somewhat more bearable.

What I look forward to most, though, is the occasion when thousands of people up and down the country gather together to watch the Christmas lights being turned on. This year the turning on of the Regent Street lights was once again a festive treat and also a PR’s dream! The crowds enjoyed performances from Taio Cruz and Peter Andre, as well as guest appearances from Jim Carey and Colin Firth. This was to tie in with the release of the A Christmas Carol movie.

However, to promote the film, the audience were encouraged to join in with a mass sing along to a well know Christmas carol.

January brings us great bargains

So once the joys of Christmas have passed, by Boxing Day I’m already thinking about sales shopping! My thinking is that I might as well make the most of it and grab myself a bargain. So through out the first week of January I can be found, along with the majority of the British female population, trawling the clothes rails on the high street.  And once that bargain is found, it’s well worth the blood, sweat and tears.

February is a time for pancakes  

On the 16^th February people up and down the country invest in flour, butter and eggs for Shrove Tuesday. What to put on your pancake is always the most crucial question of the day.  Whether it is simply some lemon and sugar or a more adventurous personal favourite such as Nutella and banana, they are a scrumptious treat which are well worth the effort and help to warm the cold evenings.

So for those who are wishing for the winter months to be a distant memory, cling to the knowledge that there are a few treats in store, which will help the cold months fly by that little bit quicker.

The wait is over for fashionistas and recessionistas alike as they flock to H&M for yet another highstreet collaboration with a high-end designer. This time it’s every shoe-aholic’s (myself included) dream – Jimmy Choo, whose range hits the shops tomorrow.

And with a pair of sandals, usually costing in the region of £500 selling for £80, no doubt the scene will be set thusly:

1.      Queues will already be snaking down Oxford Street at 5am

2.      When you do eventually get through the door, you’ll have to confront the dismay that there are only size eights left in the ‘must-have’ metallic blue cage sandals

3.      The delightful blonde woman who offered you a mint in the queue has mutated into O-Ren-Ishi, just as you try to grab the last size ten, one-shoulder suede dress

4.      If you’re lucky enough to grab a pair of the aforementioned ‘must-have’ sandals, it’s almost a certainty that half of the Xmas party contingent will also be wearing them

5.      50 per cent of the collection will be on eBay by lunchtime, selling for twice the retail price

So with this in mind, am I the only one that feels slightly sad that the aspirational element of designer fashion is being washed away, as high-end designers choose to cheapen their label by such alliances?

I completely understand that most people (myself included) cannot afford to have a designer wardrobe, and that these collaborations bring an affordable line to the masses, but to me that’s the beauty of high-end design: it’s luxury, it’s something special, it’s art.

When I eventually buy my first pair of Jimmy Choos (and it will happen one day), I want it to be in the plush boutique on Sloane Square where the immaculately presented assistant helps me into the glove-like beauties, and upon my nod of approval, delicately wraps them up in the pearlised, ribbon-handled gift bag. What I don’t want is to experience any of points one to five outlined above – just to have a pair of ‘cheap chic Choos’.

As my colleagues know, I am an Australian who has lived the majority of her life on the Sunshine Coast.  As such, I am always amazed and excited at the distinct change in seasons we experience in the UK, because in Australia, we slide from one season to another without really noticing. Here there are shorter days, lower temperatures and beautiful colours in the foliage, which are hard to go unnoticed.

If I were an artist I would find it hard to choose which colours to paint, with all the different greens in the parks, closely followed by the gold and browns. Just beautiful autumn shades. 

I took the above photo a few weeks ago, and, together with my walks through the countryside, it’s really helped me understand why I love living in England.

I must admit walking along residential streets in London the colourful fallen leaves can be mushy and dangerous, but even these add to the beauty of the season. Obviously it’s not so attractive when you’re spending your Sunday afternoons raking them off your lawn…

The next season in line is of course winter, and with it comes a colour change – white snow perhaps? Again the distinction between one season and another will be made obvious, and does spell the festival season, so make sure you enjoy! 

I recently discovered that London is the most expensive place to have a beer in the country, and from my experiences of late night drinking in Soho, I can vouch for the detrimental impact that any alcoholic consumption has on my credit card.

So I thought I would combat the financial mess we all seem to be in and befriend my savings account again (long has this friend been ignored).  Due to my new found frugality my social life has taken an unhappy downturn – but I’m determined for this not to be the case, so I have compiled a list of cheap treats in sexy Soho:

1.      Tea and Cake at Maison Bertaux, Greek Street

Established in 1871, I don’t think this patisserie has been decorated since, and that’s the charm!  Serving decadent cakes (strawberry and vanilla tart with clotted cream is amazing) and a good old cup of English tea – china cup and all!  And, if you’re lucky, there will be strange art exhibitions adorning the walls to keep you entertained.

Average Price £6

2.      Hangover Cure at The Breakfast Club, D’Arblay Street

It’s not a tribute to the Molly Ringwold / Emilio Estevez 80’s cult film, but the best hangover cure in Soho.  A brilliant selection of breakfasts, including porridge with oodles of dried fruit and runny honey to go with the enormous Latte’s they serve – great for a bleary eyed mid-week morning.

Breakfast for under a fiver

3.      Taxidermy and a pint The Endurance, Berwick Street

You need to get here early to make sure you get a good table as this pub on uber trendy Berwick Street (famed for where What’s the story morning glory? Album cover was shot).  Don’t be alarmed by the taxidermy adorning the walls – it’s all part of the attraction!

Pints aren’t cheap but the ambience makes it worthwhile

4.    One cocktail evening at The Player, Broadwick Street

If you want to feel like you’re heading to a New York speakeasy, then this is the place to go. They’ve brought back their retro cocktail range and you can even get a sparkler in your Pina Colada.  It’ll cheer you up after the worst day at work (not that we have any of those…!).

If you only have one it won’t make you ill the next day – from £6

5.      Beef in a bun at The Nosh Bar, Great Windmill Street

You can’t work on Archer Street and not love the Nosh Bar – the relatively new addition to the area has already created a loyal following. Try the Salt Beef with Cream Cheese and Mustard on Rye – it could give you the same result as Meg Ryan.

Lunch for £5

6.      Communal dining and squid at Busaba Ethai, Wardour Street

The best way to eat here is to eat everything. The communal table arrangement encourages random conversations, and you’re always sure to make new friends or discover bizarre connections which you leave thinking, “it’s a small world”.  And the salt and pepper squid is the best in Soho – just beware of queues in the evening.

Dinner for £15 – conversation is free

According to Ask Jeeves (that search engine we’ll forever associate with a stuffy butler), up to half of online users have logged on in the name of love .

Whether it’s spying on a long-lost ex, looking up a prospective partner or attempting to locate a childhood sweetheart of old, more and more surfers are using the internet to give their love lives a proactive kick up the rear. This isn’t so surprising when you consider just how wide and knowing the web is. Such phrases such as: ‘He’s bound to be on Facebook,’ ‘Looking won’t do any harm’ and ‘I’m just checking for peace of mind’ pepper far too many late night conversations in the pub.

Profiles on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Myspace have become our online imprints, straining under the weight of our holiday photos, shaky video footage and declarations of loves, hates and interests. We tell complete strangers whether we’re single, coupled or engaged; where we’re working, who we’re friends with and how we’re feeling. With all this content at our fingertips, it’s hardly a shock to discover that some of us have taken advantage and become the most efficient of online detectives.

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