Celebrating Ten Years of Cal Partners

We’re thrilled to be celebrating our ten-year anniversary, a whole decade of Cal Partners!
It's hard to believe that what started as a bit of an idea, one of those "one day, maybe..." plans, turned into something real back in 2015 when Chris took the leap and launched Cal Partners.

This month (and, in fact, this year), we’ve been celebrating to reflect and to say a big ‘Thank You!’ to our fantastic clients, suppliers, referrers, advocates and of course team.

How it all started

In his years of working as a solicitor and law firm partner, Chris had always gravitated towards the marketing and business development side of his various roles. Determined to do things ‘properly’, he committed to completing the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing, gaining the Top International Student award. He then went on to complete a second Post Graduate Diploma, this time in Digital Marketing.

Following his transition from litigation to full time marketing, Chris joined the marketing and business development team of one of the largest personal injury law firms in the UK. He then became a Business Development and Marketing Manager at a leading barristers' chambers. Whilst pursuing this career path, Chris identified a gap for pragmatic specialist marketing support specifically for professional services businesses.

…And so, Cal Partners was born. Setting up initially as a solo consultancy, Chris became very busy, very quickly and was soon joined by Rachel and then the rest of the team followed.

What we do

From the very start, we’ve stuck to what we know best. Everyone in our team has worked in professional services including law, accountancy, and forensic science, so we understand the sector, including its wider ‘eco-system’, challenges and quirks!

Through the years, we’ve worked with a wide range of professional services businesses in the UK, and now increasingly overseas, including law firms, accountants, financial advisers, consultants, surveyors, healthcare specialists, recruitment consultancies, and expert witnesses – the more niche and challenging, the better!!

As with our clients, we have always recognised the significant importance of professional standards and personal development, so each of us are CIM Chartered Marketers, or are on the pathway to becoming Chartered.

Over our ten years our clients have consistently fed back that what sets us apart is our sector insight and breadth of professional services industry experience. From marketing strategy, branding, PR, video and events to building websites, SEO, PPC, CRO and social media management, we integrate offline and digital marketing techniques to deliver measurable and impactful results for the benefit of our clients.

Again, with our baked in understanding and experience of the professional services sector, our clients value our ability to turn complex technical industry information and jargon into client and referrer friendly, engaging content.

A look back at our journey so far

If you’ve been following us this year, you’ll know we’ve been sharing monthly highlights from our latest achievements to behind-the-scenes team moments and feedback from our clients. 

Here’s a look back at our journey so far…

2015: Cal Partners was launched by Chris as a solo consultancy

2016: Rachel joined part time (and the seed of a team was planted)

2017: Rachel came on board permanently, and we moved into our very first office

2018: Alison joined the team

2019: A bigger office to match our growing client base

2020: COVID hit, and like so many other businesses, we went remote

2021: A whirlwind year as professional services firms doubled down on digital marketing

2022: Marianne joined Cal Partners

2023: A big year for progression and team promotions following post-pandemic business growth. Rachel became Head of Marketing Operations, and Alison and Marianne were promoted to Account Managers

2024: Erin joined the team

2025: Ten years, five people, over 90 professionals helped, international client base, four Chartered Marketers, and 60-plus years of combined experience

Highlights at Cal Partners

From welcoming new team members, office moves, to securing our first clients outside the North East and indeed overseas, every milestone for Cal Partners marks a step forward. Winning the Small Agency Category of the inaugural North East Marketing Awards was a standout moment. Another clear endorsement of the quality, standards, and innovation we deliver, is the fact that many of the clients who worked with us during the early stages of the business remain with Cal Partners today. Continuing to work in true partnership, we are deeply grateful for their loyalty, support and ultimately for trusting us with their brand. 

What it’s really been about

Of course, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. Like any small business, we’ve had our challenges, but we built Cal Partners to work for us and, more importantly, to work with the kinds of clients we genuinely enjoy supporting and for whom we can deliver a meaningful and tangible impact.

At the heart of it all is something really simple - we treat our clients and partners the way we’d want to be treated.

Our journey over the past ten years hasn’t just been about growing the business, it’s been about growing our team and supporting the people within it. That’s meant welcoming new faces, celebrating life’s big moments, and supporting flexible working so everyone and their own families can thrive. This year, we were delighted to welcome Marianne back from maternity leave and to meet baby Robin, moments that really bring our values to life. We’re also supporting Alison as she moves back home to Northern Ireland, where she will continue to work with us remotely.

“Starting Cal Partners was a leap of faith, but I knew there was a better way to support professional services firms with their marketing. I’m incredibly proud of how far we’ve come, not just in the work we do, but in the lasting relationships we’ve built. Having my own experience of balancing work and family, I know just how important it is to create an environment where we can all succeed, both professionally and personally. None of this would have been possible but for the contribution, resilience and consistency of my exceptional team – so thank you!! With this team, there is still so much more we can achieve in the next ten years.” - Chris Lucarelli, Director

Looking ahead

We’ve always aimed to deliver exceptional client service standards and be the go-to marketing partner for professional services firms. Our original vision hasn’t changed - to revolutionise professional services marketing by giving businesses the support they need to build strong, visible brands.

Whether you’ve worked with us, supported us, recommended us, or followed us from the sidelines, we couldn’t have done it without you. To everyone who’s been part of our journey, a very big ‘Thank You!’

Here’s to the next ten years!