By Shaun Anderson.
The journey of this brand, Hobo, has been my life’s work. It’s a story of growth, life’s inevitable challenges, and a powerful return to the core principles.
A Punk Ethos (2006–2016)
In March 2006, the idea for Hobo was born. I nearly called the business ‘Punk’. I figured someone like John Lydon would have no respect for such a thing. I wanted something unique that stood on its own. So, I called it Hobo. Hobo was Punk to me.
The name Hobo stemmed from a client meeting in early 2006, I was recently in at my old Ad agency. I sat in a meeting with the customer, Peter, and my Director and Manager. My manager spoke out of place and was told to leave the room. Peter turned to me and asked why I was “at a meeting dressed like a hobo” (no suit). I answered him that I wasn’t in his boardroom because of my sense of dress. My mother – Margaret – who would go on to be the office receptionist, had often commented on my “Hobo look”, so I thought it all apt.
I showed it to my best friend since childhood, Michael, who’d said if I have an idea like the Handy Leaflet again, I should tell him. After reading my business plan, after a quick negotiation, he simply said, “Let’s do it. I’ll need a month to set up.”
The very next day, I quit my role at Adpartners LTD in Glasgow, with my Chairman, Bill Muir’s, support, and on April 1st, 2006, Michael and I officially launched Hobo Web Ltd, with Michael having incorporated the business shortly beforehand. As I suspected of him, he managed to do it in days, not weeks.
I had registered the hobo-web.co.uk domain in March 2006, changed my monicker in forums to Hobo, built the first Hobo Web website by hand, and developed a business plan I was passionate about. Michael sorted the offices out. I launched the Hobo SEO blog proper in 2007 (thinking blogging was going to be a key strategic benefit at the time).
I had moved houses a fair number of times during this period. I remember, for a while, I had to launch the Hobo website (and manage websites for Adpartners) by hanging my laptop out of my top-story high flat in Kelly Street, to pick up someone’s unsecured wifi.
Peter went on to be my first customer when I left my job at Adpartners and set up Hobo, and was my client until he closed his company, New Leaf Finance, many years later. I worked in partnership with Adpartners until they too closed down some time after I launched Hobo.
Inverclyde Chamber of Commerce’s “Bees Knees” Awards (2007)
With Hobo and Michael Bonnar, we were proud to be finalists in the Inverclyde Chamber of Commerce’s “Bees Knees” new business awards in 2007.
What started as just me for the first year soon grew. Rodger joined in our second year, and Alan in our third. Soon, we were joined by Martin, Chris, Jack, and Robert.
We became a full-service website design and marketing agency, and our reputation attracted more talent, including many of my skilled former colleagues from Adpartners. At our peak, we were a team of fifteen, eventually settling into a core team of about ten specialists.
From our base here in Greenock, we spent a decade providing high-quality SEO services, and our work was recognised both locally and nationally.
In 2012, our expertise was given a significant nod when our site was shortlisted for ‘Best Blog’ at the UK Search Awards – we lost out to the Bing Ads community from Microsoft, but we were proud to be in that league.
When Life Reshapes Work
In late 2014, my son was born. A relationship breakdown the following spring meant my life and my priorities shifted profoundly. I became a single parent, dedicating my time to my son on a week-on, week-off basis. It was a challenging time, but the choice was clear.
As I stepped back to focus on my family, my role as the agency’s head of SEO and chief strategist left a void. It became clear how central my guidance had been.
Without my full-time attention, the agency, which had been built around my experience, with my background at Adpartners, began to lose its momentum.
The formal structure of a limited company no longer fitted my new reality. I began scaling back operations in 2016 and ultimately made the difficult but necessary decision to dissolve the company, a process formally completed in 2019. I had built the company I wanted to build, now that time – Hobohemia – was coming to an end.
(2022–Present)
When my son started school, I found myself with the time and energy to fully reconnect with my professional passion. The spark for Hobo Web had never gone away.
Following the collective pause of the national lockdown (from 26th March 2020 until the main restrictions framework ended on 9th August 2021, with the final legal measure lifting on 18th April 2022), I began to rekindle the brand with a renewed sense of purpose.
I started blogging and sharing my expertise again, channelling two decades of experience into new, powerful tools for my clients. This led to the creation of the Premium Checklist and SEO Dashboard. I wanted to codify my experience, and not just lose it to the ether.
The Hobo brand and the hobo-web.co.uk domain were created by me and have always been my personal assets. This foundational ownership is what allows me to seamlessly continue the mission I started back in 2006.
Direct Expertise, Backed by Experience
When you work with Hobo Web today, you work directly with me. You get the focus and agility of a solo expert, but with the knowledge and experience forged by building and leading a successful, award-nominated agency.
My journey has shaped what I offer:
- Proven Expertise: I have not only delivered results for clients but have also built and trained a team of specialists to do the same.
- Direct Accountability: You have a direct line to the person who founded the company and is doing the work. The buck stops with me.
- Resilience & Empathy: I understand that business and life are intertwined. I build robust strategies designed for the real world.
Thank you for being part of this story. I look forward to using my experience to help you write the next successful chapter of yours.
You can see what my customers and peers have to say about my work here: https://www.hobo-web.co.uk/testimonials/