The Foundryē C.I.C.

The Foundryē is a community interest company based in Hackney. We run free brand education for people in the early stages of building something, mostly parents and first time founders across East London, in small groups in local spaces. It is the same thinking used inside brands people know, taught in plain language, at no cost, and built so that people can carry on doing it themselves.

Our programmes run in small groups in community spaces across East London, they are free to take part in, and they are built around three questions that everything else hangs from: what is it, who is it for, and why does it matter. Everyone leaves with a written brand foundation they own, a printed workbook to keep, and one to one mentoring afterwards so the work has somewhere to go.

We are not an agency, an accelerator or a coaching business. Community before business, education before services, and understanding before dependency.


Hi there,Thank you, your application for Cohort One of Community Brand Foundations has come through and I have it. Here is what happens next:Applications close on Friday 2 October. You will hear from me by 5th October will further and you will have 3 working days to confirm :) While you are waiting, one small thing. Here is the starter workbook we use in the first session, and it is yours to keep whether or not you end up in the room. 🔗 ✨ <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SlLDRba3R8GgF_EKvzWMWRRQQj_f-H4r/view?usp=drive_link">Download: FREE Foundation Starter Workbook </a>✨ 🔗 If you can find a few spare minutes for it, the three questions at the front are the ones the whole seven weeks keep returning to: what is it, who is it for, and why does it matter. Almost nobody has a clean answer to those at this stage. That is rather the point of the programme :) If anything changes between now and 2 October, your dates, your idea, your circumstances, just reply to this email and tell me. It will not count against you. Thank you for trusting us with it.Michaela Michaela Vildova Founder and Creative Director, The Foundryē michaela@thefoundrye.com | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.instagram.com/thefoundrye/">@thefoundrye</a> The Foundryē is a community interest company in Hackney, East London. Community Brand Foundations is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund.

A FREE seven week programme for people in the early stages of building their ideas into a business. Friday morning sessions in a small group, from 16 October, in Shoreditch, East London. You will work out what you are making, who it is for and how to say it clearly, and leave with a written brand foundation you own. ✨The programme is FREE ✨ This programme is funded by <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/">The National Lottery Community Fund</a>, which means there is no cost to you and nothing to buy at the end. Who is it for?<ul><li>Anyone with an idea that has been sitting still for a while because they were not sure how to move it.</li></ul><ul><li>Parents building something flexible around family life, or thinking about it after time away from work.</li></ul><ul><li>People coming back to work by a route that is not a straight line, who want it to be their own thing this time.</li></ul><ul><li>People already trading or freelancing whose work has grown without a plan behind it.</li></ul>Most early stage founders can describe what they are making to a friend but not to a stranger, and closing that gap is what the seven weeks are for. We start with what you are actually building and who it is for, then work through purpose and positioning, the people you are trying to reach, how your brand sounds when it speaks, how it looks, and how you keep showing up once the programme ends. You do not need a business, a name, a logo or a plan. An idea you have not said out loud yet is enough. Some people come with something already trading that has grown without a plan behind it, and that is an equally good place to start from. Everyone gets a printed workbook to write in and keep, and one to one mentoring sessions with Michaela after the seven weeks finish, so the work has somewhere to go. Week 1 | 16 October | Understanding Brand Foundations and StrategyWeek 2 | 23 October | Defining Purpose and Positioning DistinctlyWeek 3 | 6 November | Identifying Your Target Audience EffectivelyWeek 4 | 13 November | Developing Your Brand Voice and MessagingWeek 5 | 20 November | Establishing Visual Identity and AestheticsWeek 6 | 27 November | Building a Sustainable Consistency PlanWeek 7 | 4 December | Completing Your Foundation and a Clear Plan Creative director and founder Michaela runs the sessions. She spent over ten years building brands inside companies including Trinny London, Kurt Geiger, Reiss and COS, and she started The Foundryē because that kind of thinking usually sits behind a fee most people at the start cannot pay. Sessions run Friday mornings, 10am to 12pm, at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.google.com/maps?gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBBzI4M2owajeoAgCwAgA&amp;um=1&amp;ie=UTF-8&amp;fb=1&amp;gl=uk&amp;sa=X&amp;geocode=KTfNLBqxHHZIMTr9zRbkcuzE&amp;daddr=High+Street,+224+Shoreditch+High+Street+229+Shoredicth,+231+Shoreditch+High+St,+London+E1+6PJ">House of Creative, 224 Shoreditch High Street, London E1 6PJ</a>

FREE Business Brand Foundation Community Programme