Mothers who specialise in making podcasts

HATTIE Sanderson and Georgie Parvin are both producers and
co-founders of Goodfull Media, a media production company based in Henley that specialises in podcasts and live events. Both live in Shiplake, and both are married with two children each.

Hattie enjoys playing tennis on sunny days and is currently renovating a house while Georgie volunteers as a dresser at Smart Works Reading, a charity that helps unemployed women gain the clothing and confidence needed to secure meaningful employment.

Describe your business

Goodfull Media is a media production agency and producer of the HoT (Henley-on-Thames) Podcast Festival.

How many people does it employ?

Hattie: Just us but we work with a couple of wonderful freelancers, including Katie Howe, and we try and use local companies as much as possible to help us grow, the Creative Duck being one of them.

What did you do before you started this business?

Hattie: I’m a former television producer working in documentaries and factual programming for broadcasters, including the BBC, Sky Arts and Channel 4. Working across production and development.

Georgie: I spent 11 years at Condé Nast Publishing, working as a creative producer and project man-ager at British Vogue for my last five years there before going freelance.

When did you start your business?

Hattie: September this year, following a charity podcast event in April.

What was your objective?

Hattie: Having met over the school gates we both realised we wanted to get back to work on something we were both passionate about as well as working around school hours and on our own terms.

Who or what influenced you?

Hattie: We didn't want to work for someone else, we wanted to be in charge of our own hours and our days.

Do you have a mentor?

Hattie: I will always be grateful to Southan Morris at Storyvault Films, my former boss, who gave me my first big job in television. He showed me how to nurture ideas.

Georgie: I will always be grateful to Frances Bentley and Harriet Wilson, two of my former bosses at British Vogue. I learnt so much from them — not just about publishing.

Do you compare on a regular basis?

Hattie: We are in touch daily and sit down every other week to go through the numbers and work on the budget.

How do you market your business?

Hattie: We have just set up our socials and our website is currently being developed. We will be putting up posters and handing out flyers over the next few months for the HoT Podcast Festival too, our first main commercial event.

What’s the best thing about running your own business?

We can work under our own steam and on our own terms in a supportive and happy environment while also working around our kids’ school hours.

What’s the most challenging aspect?

Hattie: Start-up life and working to a tight budget; realising that it’s not going to have overnight success and it’s a bit of a long game before we potentially make any profit. It has been a bit of a learning curve.

Where is your business headed?

Hattie: We hope to grow the HoT Podcast Festival just like the Henley Literary Festival has done over the last 20 years and to potentially expand our scope by launching pop-ups in other towns outside Henley. We would also like to see where else creatively Goodfull Media can go as a production agency, drawing on our production skills to create our own podcasts and other live events.

How important are online sales?

Hattie: Very important when selling tickets to our events.

Do you have a five-year plan?

Hattie: We are working on the business plan but we hope that within five years we will become known country-wide as the podcast festival everyone wants to come to.

Do you have a work-life balance?

Hattie: We generally work school hours, so we can be there for our children at pick-up and for clubs. At times we may be required to do things at the weekend but we divide and conquer.

Do you set goals for your business at the start of the financial year?

Hattie: We have just started but our main goal this financial year is to make a profit from the festival and use this to grow the business.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?

Hattie: Not to panic. What can seem like a problem one day has normally resolved itself by the next.

What advice would you offer to anybody starting a business?

Hattie: Go for it. Life is too short not to try. If it doesn’t work out you will have a whole host of new skills.

What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made?

Hattie: I worked for a really toxic law firm for a year when I left TV before having children and it was the biggest mistake of my life. With Goodfull Media we’re too busy to worry about any mistakes we make along the way. We’re learning every day.

How organised are you?

Hattie: Extremely. Multi-tasking is key. We’re mums so we’re used to juggling different tasks and we write a good to-do list.

What are you looking forward to in 2026?

Hattie: Bringing three incredible podcasts to Henley in February for the HoT Podcast Festival.

How are you planning for retirement?

Hattie: Private pensions.

What’s the secret of your success?

Hattie: We love what we do and believe in what we’re building.

What three qualities are most important to become a success?

Hattie: Be on top of the numbers, look for ways to save money and

create a striking brand that will sell.

How do you dress for work each day and is it important?

Hattie: Most days start in gym kit and we often work from the kitchen table. But for meetings or lunches we make an effort — something polished.

What can’t you do without every day?

Hattie: A cup of tea, or three.

Georgie: Exercise.

Lunch at your desk or going out?

Hattie: At our desks but it’s fun to go out once in a while.

What do you read?

Georgie: I love to read and always keep a novel on the go. To stay up to date I read a range of newspapers, including the Henley Standard.

Hattie: We also both try to keep up to date with the relevant social media platforms.

What change would you most like to see in 2026?

We hope more employers will realise how incredible the untapped workforce of mums is and be more open to flexible working.

Interview by Will Hamilton,
intermediary and global

marketing consultant, Hamilton Associates