Meet James Hunt | Chief Executive Officer

We had the good fortune of connecting with James Hunt and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi James, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I’ve always had a high risk tolerance. When I was 23 I purchased a home over the internet, sight unseen, in another country. I packed a suitcase, all my possessions at the time, and moved from Canada to Florida. The two years I spent living there turned out to be a great adventure—one that I’ll remember and cherish forever.

I’ve taken a lot of risks throughout my life, and not all of ended quite as well as my Florida home purchase. But I often think of the saying, “If you want to win the lottery you’ve got to buy a ticket.” I think that’s true in life and business. With great risk comes great reward, so you’ve got to take chances if you want to live a fulfilling life.

When it comes to business and taking risks, I’m a firm believer that you have to spend money to make money. Investing in your business—whether in advertising, equipment, personnel, continuing education—is risky but part of growing a business. I have no problem taking these kinds of risks if it could pay off down the line.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I run a full-service marketing agency called Brand New Marketing. We’ve been in business since 2013. We provide branding and digital marketing services to small businesses, primarily in the Dallas area.

I’ve never wanted to own a big business. My dad owned a large company and the stress he endured managing hundreds of employees is beyond my liking. I enjoy running a boutique agency that works with other small businesses, favoring quality over quantity.

When you hire us as your marketing agency, we become a part of your team. Our philosophy is, “When your business succeeds, our business succeeds.” Our approach to doing business is completely different from that of enterprise-level marketing agencies or even a lot of small companies. I genuinely want our clients to succeed because I know how hard it is to be successful as a small business owner.

We have several clients who have been with us for nearly a decade. Some have even started new companies, and we did the marketing for those too. I think that speaks volumes about the service we provide.

Our focus has pretty much always stayed the same: provide digital marketing services to small businesses. What’s changed is our knowledge and level of expertise. I will always be a student, in business and life. We’re constantly learning new strategies, methods, technologies… anything that can improve our service offering (and help our clients grow).

We’ve encountered a lot of obstacles during my time at the agency. Some were our fault, some weren’t. Regardless, the path forward is always the same. Learn from the present so we can be better prepared for the future (and hopefully not make the same mistake again).

We’re an extremely capable marketing agency, and honestly just a solid group of people. As I said previously, we genuinely have our clients’ best interests in mind. We’re not for everyone, but for small business owners who are ambitious, proactive, and serious about wanting to take their company to the next level, we could be the perfect fit.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ll probably catch some flack for this, but if my best friend wanted to experience the “best time ever” I’d probably tell them to go somewhere else! Shoot, I’d join them!

Jokes aside—Dallas does have some great restaurants, bars, and places to hang out. For sushi I’d go with Sushi Sake in Richardson. Nuri Grill off Royal Lane is fantastic… a MUST try! Italian, Prego on Greenville. Hudson House in Addison has a great happy hour for oysters and drinks. Musume downtown for dinner followed by Akai. Del Frisco’s Double Eagle is always great.

For nightlife I’d venture to Uptown, Cedar Springs, and It’ll Do. The Virgin’s downstairs bar and pool is also a great time. There are honestly a lot of places to go in Dallas, it just depends on what you’re into (and how crazy you’re looking to get).

I’ve also been impressed with the new development at The Village. I lived there for a year and am seriously sad I missed out on all their new amenities!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’ve received a lot of support from others throughout my life, but if there’s one person I’d dedicate my success to, it would be my grandfather (Lucky Jim Hunt). He’s had the most influence, and made the biggest impact, on my life. He’s my grandfather, my mentor, and my friend. I wouldn’t be where I am, or who I am, without him.

Website: https://www.thebrandnewmarketing.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandnewdallas/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameswesleyhunt/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brandnewmarketing/