Meet the founder

Meet the founder of Prowess Marketing, Rachel Dugdale!

Rachel’s academic background includes an undergraduate degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Leeds, as well as a master’s degree in business administration from Boston College. The knowledge and experience gained during her time in further education was key in giving Rachel the required skills and understanding of what it takes when starting a business from scratch.

Shortly after completing her academic studies, Rachel joined Advance Player Development (APD), an independent football coaching business, where she rapidly rose through the ranks being promoted from Head of Marketing to Acting Director within the space of 18 months. In this role, Rachel was responsible for APD’s business development which led to the doubling of the company’s annual revenue. This extensive business management experience was highly valuable and transferable to the running of Prowess Marketing today.

Alongside her academic studies and workplace experience, Rachel has a long running and successful career as a professional Footballer, with appearances in the WSL and Championship for Reading, Doncaster Belles, Charlton and Coventry. Rachel has also played internationally for Northern Ireland, earning 28 senior international caps, including during the country’s 2019 World Cup Qualifiers.

In April 2022, after sustaining a long-term ACL injury and with anxieties surrounding her financial situation, Rachel made the decision (in a local Costa Coffee) to set up what was then called SunUp Creative, a marketing agency specialising in social media. Fast forward over a year later including a recent rebrand, SunUp Creative is now Prowess Marketing, a thriving company with several employees and an extensive portfolio of clients in multiple industries.