“I want my journey to show others, especially young women in business, that you don’t have to wait for permission to get started. Start where you are, with what you have. Anything is possible.”
A 20-year old woman from Northern Ireland has launched a marketing agency in England, putting her ‘amongst some of the youngest entrepreneurs in the UK’.
Katie Whiteside moved from Co Armagh in 2024 and took a bold leap, starting Gen Social, a marketing agency now based in Milton Keynes.
She was in the middle of studying a digital marketing apprenticeship at SRC when she was given ‘an opportunity she couldn’t turn down’.
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Katie said: “When I arrived in England, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I had already spoken to my now business partner, Dylan Russell, about starting up a marketing agency, but in all honesty, we didn’t know what this was going to look like until we sat down and talked after I moved.”
This has been a “lifelong dream” of Katie’s. She recalls in her first year of Markethill High School, when asked what she wanted to be when she was older, she said she wanted to be “an entrepreneur”.
A statement said: “Since its launch, Gen Social has helped create content for many businesses, building their presence through campaigns and social media strategy, with some clients gaining a +438% increase on social media interactions and making a positive return on investment. The agency has grown steadily, even navigating the challenges of a competitive UK market, with its speciality being in storytelling and community engagement.”
In 2024, Katie’s marketing efforts won Madlug the ‘Best Use of Social Media’ award at the Social Enterprise Awards.
Katie is now focused on scaling the business, speaking publicly at events, and becoming a voice for young women in business.
She said: “I want my journey to show others, especially young women in business, that you don’t have to wait for permission to get started. Start where you are, with what you have. Anything is possible.”
A statement added: “Dylan Russell, Co-owner of Gen Social, is a property investor with a multimillion-pound portfolio. With his business background and relentless drive, Katie and Dylan are the dream team.”
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