I’m thrilled to introduce you to Danika Daly, our newest PR Couture contributor, who has already penned some amazing pieces including “Fashion PR 101: 5 Ways to Experience New York Fashion Week.” Danika is the founder of Danika Daly PR, a NYC public relations agency specializing in the fashion, beauty and lifestyle markets. Since you’ll be seeing her name a lot around the site, I wanted to share a bit more about her background and of course, share the amazing “Fashion PR Bible,” she has created over the years, filled with PR Couture articles, blush!
I always had a knack for writing, organizing events, networking, but never thought I could integrate all of that into a career before I went to college. I wanted to be in a field where I could express myself and use my creativity. My family and friends suggested PR, and I took their advice and majored in PR at the University of Florida. I loved the courses, the teachers and everything about my major. In my junior year, one of my teachers urged me to apply to be on the UF team for the PRSSA National Bateman Competition, which she was coaching that year. I was chosen to be a member of the Bateman team that year to represent my school, and it was the most hands-on experience in PR one could ever get while in college. I received several offers upon graduation for jobs I didn’t even apply for from being on the Bateman team and through teacher recommendations.
I did several internships throughout college, and my last internship at a boutique PR firm turned into a job where eventually I became the senior account executive for all the fashion and beauty accounts, and managed all the events the company produced. Some of my teachers and bosses told me I would own a firm one day, which at the time I never believed. After picking up a lot of freelance work to the point where it became full-time, I decided it was time to dive into the world of PR on my own, and thus started Danika Daly PR.
Right now our major project is New York Fashion Week, from booking venues, to casting models, and finding sponsors to sending invites. Other projects we are working on are store launches, assisting clients with upcoming collections, re-branding, and a lot more. We currently work with fashion brands William Okpo, By Misha, Elease Donovan Swimwear, Crowned Bird, Lisu Vega and Lakum Collection.
We have so many sweet spots. As far as clients, we love young, fresh talent and new products that are deviations from the norm. We represent such different types of fashion brands. Not one of them is similar or can be pitched the same, and we love that!
We are also techies. We breathe the internet. Though I love to feel the pages of a magazine in my hand, I am also addicted to the internet – online magazines, blogs, Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram; they are my guilty pleasures. I’ll take the internet over a decadent dessert any day. Even when I’m supposed to be unwinding at 2am, I lay in bed on my phone scrolling around for inspiration and new things, and jot ideas in my notebook to turn into strategies. Despite being a techie, I’m also a notebook hoarder.
I set goals for myself and my team on a daily, weekly, monthly and long-term basis. I even set goals for my clients, and make sure they stick to them as well. I measure success by how many of those goals are accomplished for my clients and myself, and how many to-do’s I can cross off my list. Without goals you can’t really measure anything
I started reading PR Couture when I was in college. It took me through internships, jobs, freelance and starting my own company. I printed (and still do!) my favorite articles and put them in my Fashion PR Bible. It’s organized into categories such as events, pitching and social media. PR Couture inspires me and makes me feel like I can conquer any project.
I wanted to write for PR Couture because I want to be able to inspire others in this field, share tidbits from the knowledge and experience I’ve gained, and teach others strategies and tips that I had to learn the hard way.
My PR Girl must-haves are my iPhone, my laptop and a notebook. You will never see me without any of these items.
