Success Stories

Pippa Rees, MD Style Company and creator of Naked Ambition Corporate Branding Programmes

“Many people ask how I got into my line of work – I mean who can actually gets paid for telling people what to wear?

But way back then when I started my corporate career as a ‘Fashion PR’ I knew that I wasn’t going to ‘make the grade’ if I didn’t address my image. I didn’t feel good about myself, I lacked confidence, self-belief and in my heart of hearts, knew that I could do better.

So I got hold of myself, got back into regular exercise, ate healthily, visited the hair dresser, worked out what suited my body shape and took a good, long look around me at what my senior managers were doing.

And by ‘doing’ I mean what where they saying, how where they walking, why were they talking? It wasn’t just about what they were wearing but about the whole image package.

And the rest, as they say, is history!”

Before After


Alison Baker, Landscape Architect

“As my work can take me from the office to an outdoor building site, within the hour - my working wardrobe has always been VERY casual and, if I’m honest, almost sloppy.I hadn’t worried too much about this as my preferred way of dressing out of work is also very relaxed and I felt that cargo trousers, trainers and fleece tops were appropriate for what I was doing. It was only when I decided that I wanted to take on more responsbility and project manage my developments, that I realised that this ‘look’ was not going to get me very far.

My aim was to find a position that would put me in charge of very disparate teams that included designers, financiers, labourers and site workers so developing respect and authority within the team was critical to the ‘on time’ delivery of my work.

When I contacted Pippa, one of my biggest fears was suddenly being ‘noticed’ in the office for my change of appearance, as I feel very uncomfortable being the centre of attention. But as Pippa explained, I would have to go through this process to reach my corporate goal and it was a case of ‘grin and bear it’!

The reality however, was somewhat different, as the comments that came my way were highly complimentary which in turn, gave me more confidence and ulitmately allowed me to believe in my abilities and eventually I went for the ‘new job’.

I have just completed my first long term landscape development as project manager in the Midlands and have been thrilled with the results - both financially, personally and professionally. Thank you, Pippa.”

Before After

Phil Bray, Managing Director, Four Corners

“We are a relatively new independent financial management company, but when we started, I felt it was critical that my staff knew what the company stood for, how we were different to our competitors and how I expected them to communicate these values through their own behaviour and dress.

I worked with Pippa to develop a personalised training session, that helped my staff to understand more about non-verbal communication skills, impression management, body language and how to align personal values with those of the business. There is no doubt in my mind, that it has made a contributing factor to our dynamic growth in such a short period of time.

I am happy for my senior advisors to wear suits, without a tie, because that reflects the modern attitude that our business has to financial advice – but I am not happy to see jeans in the office, as this says too casual, weekend wear and in my opinion shows a lack of respect for the clients who come to see us. We are a professional organisation that needs to build a trusting relationship with its clients and I believe this is not the correct attire for a company that is trusted with the financial security of individuals.”

Julie Stapleton, Area Premier Manager, HSBC

“HSBC has been launching a new ‘out of town’ business product for our corporate customers, which aims to provide a better quality of service that is both accessible and efficient. These corporate centres allow us to give a ‘face’ to the ‘name’ and consequently develop much more effective and mutually beneficial relationships.

Because one of key goals was to develop this personal concept fully, I wanted to give our senior commercial staff the very best advantage in this new arena. I wanted to bring in the services of a corporate brand coach and found that by working together as a team, Pippa could deliver exactly what we wanted.

The training that Style Company delivered was impactful, relevant and helped our staff to effectively communicate how their new roles fitted into the bigger corporate goal. There is no doubt in my mind that building effective relationships by using core verbal and non-verbal communication skills is imperative in the financial sector. These relationships have to start with trust, and first impressions have a huge role to play in developing this aspect of a personal relationship in the corporate world.”

David Blondel, Student Development Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP has developed a graduate induction programme that includes the importance of effective personal impact.

“PwC has a strong commitment to learning and personal development throughout the firm, and the process starts with our new graduates as they join us. We have over 1000 graduates joining each year and our induction is designed to provide both personal and professional advice, helping them understand the environment they’ll be working in and the expectations of clients and colleagues, alongside the acquisition of technical expertise and business skills to enable them to fulfil their new role.”

Blondel points out that the transition from student to employee can be a challenging one and PwC is keen to support its new recruits as they ‘re-brand’ themselves for a different life-stage.

“Some graduates have a harder time adjusting from a very casual environment at university, into the formal corporate workplace - what does ‘business casual’ mean? What kind of factors influence people’s first impression of you? So we take time out at the induction to focus on ‘personal branding’ – how people make a first impression including using body language, eye contact, what they wear.”

Personal Brand Coach Pippa Rees has helped deliver the graduate courses with PwC and believes that it is vital for accountants to convey their brand attributes through their appearance, “Customers are buying into a brand when they employ accountants and they expect those brand ambassadors to be professional, respectable and authoritative.”

PwC’s Blondel adds, “We get great feedback from those taking part because at the beginning of their career it’s providing practical tips and advice in a fun and informative way. It undoubtedly helps our people develop impact and presence through non-verbal communication skills that they might not previously have considered.”

Brian Gabrial, Sales Director, Norwich Union

“Insurance is a highly competitive industry, particularly in the health care arena and when I joined Norwich Union, I immediately asked myself, “Did my team appear professional, committed, knowlegeable and able to do the job? Could they be trusted with our client’s financial security? Were they able to communicate effectively?”

“I passionately believe that the very best sales training can simply lead to nothing, if the overall impression does not re-affirm what is being said by the consultant. I do not believe in dress down days at work, because in my experience this leads to a more relaxed way of thinking (ie: it’s nearly the weekend!) and consequently a drop in productivity.

Pippa helped to coach my team to think about how they could actively make some changes to their lifestyle that would have a positive impact on their image, self esteem and ability to create impact and influence. It was great to see them over a period of time, take up new sporting challenges, give up smoking and I even ended up having my own suits tailor made – a decision that I wish I’d made 20 years ago!”

Andrew Hector, Partner, King Sturge

“King Sturge has recently introduced a new business development model, to make our own working practises more efficient and ultimately more beneficial for our clients. To get the key messages across to our staff, I organised a ‘rebranding’ conference to give partners from across all our geographical offices, the opportunity to get together, hear the new branding package and discuss ‘best practise’.

To help reinforce the core messages, we invited Pippa to help us understand how to manager our own personal branding, so that we can deliver with impact and positively influence every interaction we have with potential clients, even on the phone. It was a powerful presentation and gave us a genuine insight into how we can develop ourselves further, in an industry that is also becoming increasingly competitive. If we want to portray a dynamic, forward thinking property agency – do we actively display that through our behaviours and dress code?”