Art School Plus, London

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Ella Snell

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BACKGROUND

During the pandemic Art School Plus founder Ella Snell reassessed her career path. After years of working with artists and cultural institutions, she realised her passion lay in helping new artists navigate the complexities of building a professional career. Art School Plus is a training and mentorship organisation designed to equip emerging artists with the skills they need to thrive outside traditional gallery settings.

 

"Many artists come out of art school with immense talent, but they aren’t prepared for the business side of things – they don’t know how to develop funding applications, pitch for projects, or make strategic career choices. We connect these artists with cultural institutions and help them build sustainable careers.”  

 

Before joining the mentoring programme one of Ella’s key challenges was finance. She was also trying to navigate being business-minded while not sacrificing the value-focussed, not-for-profit mission of Art School Plus.   

 

"Years two to four of a business are tough. You’re no longer eligible for Start Up support, nor established enough for mainstream Scale Up support."  

 

In Get Ready for Business Growth Mentoring Ella found a stream of business support that was a perfect middle ground between start up and scale up provisions, and could help her tackle some of the problems she was facing.  

 

Support

Ella was paired with Alex Thompson, Managing Director of Troubador Publishing. From their first session, Ella knew that Alex was a good match for her business. His background in marketing provided a fresh perspective, and his approach was supportive yet practical.  

 

"Alex was great - he helped me think through things in a way I hadn’t before. His marketing expertise was really valuable, particularly in helping us develop an indirect marketing strategy that felt appropriate for the arts sector."  

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IMPACT​

Get Ready for Business Growth Mentoring proved to be an important step in Ella’s business journey, helping to lay the foundation for Art School Plus’s future growth. Alex’s extensive marketing expertise proved particularly impactful. Instead of traditional advertising, Ella began focusing on an indirect marketing strategy creating engaging content, blogs and knowledge-sharing materials that built credibility and trust within the arts community. Alex also provided invaluable support with financial modelling, a key area of improvement for him during his time on the scale up programme and a crucial aspect of business development that Ella had found challenging.   

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"One of the best things about the mentorship was the accountability it gave me. Just having that date in the diary each month kept me focused on the bigger pieces of thinking and strategy, which can easily get lost in the daily busyness of running a business." 

 

For Ella and Art School Plus, the Mentoring programme provided much more than practical advice. A significant impact of the support was the structured time for reflection it provided.  

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"Mentorship was brilliant. It gave me space to pause and reflect, which is so important when you’re in the thick of delivery and building the business. Having that support really helped."  

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With a stronger financial model, a more refined marketing approach, and regular time for reflection, Ella has steered Art School Plus towards sustainable growth, while not losing sight of its values and mission. The benefit from the mentoring sessions has been mutual, with Alex finding the experience as a mentor personally enriching and rewarding.  

 

"The tools and perspectives we gained through the mentorship have been invaluable. Alex was a fantastic mentor - his insights and support have helped us stay focused and move forward with clarity."  

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