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| Kim Farry on ITV's This Morning (Image: Metro) |
It is very rare for me to talk about my work publicly. Very rarely I would openly reveal anything about it on my blog, which will always hold my personal views on political and cultural affairs. But only on this occasion I will talk about an element of my professional life, and so here it goes.
I'll start by telling you a story. In February 2016, I was introduced, by a trusted associate of mine, to a woman called Kim Farry. My associate, who was Kim's agent at the time, briefed me on her client and said she needed help trying to improve her profile. A year previous, Kim was the subject of a documentary on Channel 5 as the 'Million Pound Shoplifter, living off the state', and had since sought ways to improve her life after the intense recognition this programme gave her at the time. As a public relations professional who likes a challenge, I agreed to meet with Kim and see what the hype was about.
Admittedly, I had never heard of Kim at this point and never really paid attention to documentaries on Channel 5 as they were, and to a large degree still are, there to showcase how 'low' people can stoop. We met over coffee in Putney for a couple of hours and I instantly took a like to her. It wasn't something I expected because at that time, she was clean from shoplifting for just over a year and it was really difficult to tell which way her life was going to go.
In that first encounter, a few things struck me with Kim. Firstly, she was more than happy to freely talk about her journey. In my experience, at the initial stage of a professional relationship, clients generally give me headline stuff. Kim didn't. Secondly, she was full of ideas. Usually, it's me that starts the brainstorming after a first meeting, but there was a genuine desire from her to change her image and give back to the community. Thirdly, she explained why she did the Channel 5 documentary - purely, to expose herself. For her, it was the only way to get recognised so that the public - shops and their security guards included - know that she has stopped and is willing to do so for the rest of her days. Choosing to do this was a huge risk, as shoplifters tend to hide and keep a low profile, knowing full well that stealing is seen as one of the worst things anyone can do, behind murder and sexual assault.
My intrigue in Kim wanted me to be part of her clean, life journey.
I knew that representing Kim was going to be one of the biggest challenges of my career. In the Channel 5 documentary, the extent of her life as a shoplifter was bluntly showcased. She stole a heck of a lot, and for a very long period of time, being branded 'shameless' and crippling businesses without remorse in the process. First impression often sticks with people and it is therefore an uphill task for the public, in the general sense, to appreciate where Kim is today without being reminded of her past.
What I appreciated was that Kim suffered an addiction, many in fact. It wasn't just the stealing, but the excesses of everything else which came with her shoplifting were things she needed to address in order to be at peace with herself, so she can help others. As like alcoholism or being addicted to cocaine or cannabis for instance, it is easy to get into a destructible habit and go through desperate lengths to keep the habits going. That said, the moment you say 'enough', it is equally easy to stop. The challenge is to maintain being clean. As like any other person with addictions, Kim has her 'bad days', where she is tempted to return to her past. These moments come and go and five years on, Kim has these less. And seeing her grow out of these urges have been profound.
The past three-and-a-half-years with Kim has given me a variety of emotions. It continues to be a pleasure, as she is a terrific client. But, as with any client, I want to make sure that they are wholeheartedly happy within themselves before going public with what they wish to promote. In that way, they can eloquently talk about the things they are genuinely passionate about. With Kim, her emotions were raw and needed to be expressed in a way that made her comfortable, and also on her terms. During the first year of me knowing her, she told me she had been developing her memoir and wanted it published. Before considering it, I needed to read it and oh boy, it doesn't beat around the bushes.
Her book (out now on Amazon), for me, was a perfect opportunity to try and get her message across, address her past and heal, being the person she aspires to be today. To me, it was hugely important to get it out, not just for publicity reasons. But because it is genuinely an important reference for businesses to spot the signs of a shoplifter, as well as being an important reference to those who want to understand life in depravity and poverty in the 1970s-90s, thus learning lessons so we don't have more 'old Kims'. Kim hasn't done it to glorify what she did, as some on Twitter claim. She will reminisce on some moments, of course. I think this is normal and she is entitled to look back at some days with a smile.
The key goal for the publicity drive was to show how Kim has moved on from her days as a shoplifter and why she is so passionate in helping others away from a life of crime. These are things she strived to do, ever since she did that documentary four years ago. She proactively seeks opportunities - unpaid, yet with poignant impact nonetheless. So when I arranged to have her on ITV's This Morning, my idealism got me thinking that this could be the beginning of something great. It was her third appearance on the show and I knew how far she had come since her last interview there.
The interview itself, in my eyes, went great. The presenters, Ben Shepherd and Rochelle Humes asked questions without a hint of judgement in tone. It put Kim at relative ease and she was happy with the process. She was still nervous, but I was proud of her. While they didn't delve into the book as much as I'd like, I knew that it was going to be a start of a journey to truly rehabilitate her profile. I also knew that Kim's live TV appearance would raise eyebrows and the response from online press websites was less than apologetic. They were more than happy to identify a handful of tweets who were dismayed at why This Morning allowed her on.
My initial reactions to the publicity aftermath wasn't great. While I had always been taught that 'bad publicity is good publicity', it still puts into perspective of the true challenges Kim will face in the short-term. We have succeeded, together, in over three years, for Kim to be at peace with herself. Her family life has improved, she befriends security guards in shops and forms great alliances with relatively influential members of the public sector, who appreciate how she can truly benefit troubled children in modern society. The next challenge is for an unforgiving public to see Kim's authenticity and present in a more positive light.
Kim often comes to me and says "John, I wished that shoplifting didn't control my life," and "why can't the public accept me as they would a recovering alcoholic or drug addict?" Unfortunately, as her PR person, with the latter, I could answer with "Only society can answer that". It is an arguable statement that those who are addicted to alcohol tend to be sympathised. There are lots of support networks for those in that situation as is treated as a health matter, compared to a shoplifting addiction, which is a criminal matter. But alcoholism, like shoplifting, affects everyone else around that person, as well as the individual involved, and society as a whole, does a very good job in either giving people a helping hand or dig them to the bottom with little opportunity to come back.
It is somewhat unfortunate that support networks aren't offered to everybody with any type of addiction, at any time. Just because someone rejects help the first time and continue to destruct their lives at that exact moment, I truly feel it's important to keep the door open. I cannot condone what Kim did for much of her life. But if we want to live in a reformed society that promotes acceptance, why should we ever deny a reformed person that opportunity to use their expertise in order to prevent said crimes and addictions from happening in the future?
Kim is proactive and resourceful, creating her own support network which I'm proud to be part of. Anyone who shows the willingness of how they want to move on from their dark past, shouldn't be denied a helping hand, otherwise old habits will come back and nobody will ever learn. Luckily, and thankfully, I give Kim the freedom to do the hard work and she is blossoming. She may not realise it but her support network keep reminding her of her profound progress.
You may still be reading this article and think that Kim deserves all the negativity, but I strongly suggest people buy the book and see it how I see it, as an important reference. She did state on This Morning that the royalties go to her, which they do on the large part. But when she also said the funds will be used to enable her to build a charity (or social enterprise), please do believe this. She is building her foundations with the relationships she is developing. Trust me, I wouldn't have Kim as a client if I didn't believe in her vision of making her local communities a better place. She has helped shape how I want to help people using my expertise in reputation management and public relations and for that, I am grateful. I hope that, in good time, her vision is spread with belief by society. That is when I know my work is done, and Kim's given the chance she'll take with the greatest dignity.
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