It’s important that we work with artists with their own purpose and ideologies when it comes to creating content. We strongly believe in creating content with a humanistic approach and we’re lucky to have built up a roster of like-minded artists
To the women with an entrepreneurial spirit, my advice would be to choose a business partner who matches your values, and will challenge you to grow
We just had a dream, and we went for it… making a shit tonne of memories along the way
Alex Lutostanska and Morgan Parker are business partners, friends, and fierce advocates for female entrepreneurship. Together, they have built a successful artist representation and production agency called AMP, working with clients like Apple, Burger King, Nike, Google, and Calvin Klein.
But their journey wasn’t always easy. As women in a male-dominated industry, they faced numerous challenges and setbacks. Alex, in particular, had to overcome the stigma of being a young, female entrepreneur in Ibiza, where she started her first business at the age of 23. "I had to be my own boss and live on my own terms,” she says. “I intuitively felt a clear direction as to who I was and what I wanted to achieve.”
Morgan felt the same drive and passion for entrepreneurship, and after a short period of internship, she joined Alex to start AMP in 2012. Together, they built up a roster of photographers and directors with a shared belief in creating a cool aesthetic with a humanist approach, and curating artists that want to tell stories and create powerful content.
Despite the challenges, Alex and Morgan remained undeterred, and their hard work and determination paid off. Today, they are part of a growing community of women who are making waves in the creative industry, challenging the status quo, and encouraging others to do the same.
“I think it’s important to be doing your bit in today’s climate,” Alex says. “Having done many years of charity work overseas empowering women, I now want to try to instil this into AMP’s strategy.”This commitment to social responsibility led Alex and Morgan to create Be Nice Projects, launching soon - a platform that partners with charities close to their hearts and sells prints, books, and merchandise that targets an audience that wants individual art at affordable prices while giving back to the community.
Their journey as female entrepreneurs is a powerful reminder of the importance of trust, perseverance, and community in achieving success. It also highlights the ongoing challenges faced by women in the workplace and the need for greater support and empowerment for future generations.
According to research by Orchard, 78% of the creative workplace in the UK is male, despite the fact that 65% of students who enrolled in creative arts and design courses in 2018/19 were women. This discrepancy is just one example of the many obstacles that women continue to face in the workforce.
But Alex and Morgan’s story shows that it is possible to overcome these obstacles, and that empowering girls and women to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams is essential for a more equitable and diverse workforce in the future.
As Alex says, “Being a single parent working mom isn’t always easy, but the positives outweigh the negative. You have to be military about managing your time and be unapologetic for wanting to remain independent. It’s okay to want to be a mother and work.”
You started AMP together in 2012, how would you describe your experience as women in the creative industry before you created AMP?
Alex says: “Testing at times… I’ve been working in this industry since the 1990s across media, marketing, production, and agenting, and it’s never been short on male egos let me tell you!”
Morgan says: “Something that never sat right with me was the lack of female role models and mentors in our industry. Why is it that men’s lights shine brighter than women’s? Luckily when I met Alex, I felt like I’d found not only a friend, but a mentor when it came to navigating our male-dominated workplace. Together we fought for our independence.”
What artists do you work with at AMP?
Morgan says: “We agent photographers and directors. From Kell Mitchell who advocates female empowerment and equality, to Nico Froehlich who explores the social impact on the working class, and Freya Najade who is documenting Life in Hackney.”
Alex says: “It’s important that we work with artists with their own purpose and ideologies when it comes to creating content. We strongly believe in creating content with a humanistic approach and we’re lucky to have built up a roster of like-minded artists.”
You mentioned Kell Mitchell advocates female empowerment, can you tell us a little bit more about this?
Alex says: “Kell’s work sheds light on important social issues, particularly those related to working parents. As a working mother herself, she fully understands the challenges of balancing work and family life. This is reflected in her imagery, which celebrates the real daily life of parenthood.”
“Kell also supports Equal Lens, a non-profit organisation that promotes women and non-binary photographers. She has dedicated her work to ensuring that the world of commercial photography truly reflects the diversity of the world we live in.”
And what is it like to work with your best friend for so long?
Alex says: “A dream. Sometimes it can feel like swimming against the tide when balancing being a single parent, going through an early menopause and running a business, but when you’ve got someone by your side who understands at the last minute that ‘this morning isn’t going to happen’ because you’re child is ill or you're feeling hormonal, it means everything.”
Morgan says: “So special… It’s something I can’t put into words. We’ve mentored each other through work and life for over a decade and the memories we’ve collected are priceless.”
What current challenges do you face as women in the industry?
Alex says: “As mothers and entrepreneurs, we know all too well the challenges of balancing work and parenting responsibilities.”
“I read somewhere that working mothers spend an average of 54 additional hours a week on parenting and household jobs, totalling around 79 hours a week when combined with work. This is truly a testament to the resilience of working mothers everywhere, and it’s a challenge that many of us face every day!”
What are your top tips for women entering the industry today?
Alex says: “To the women with an entrepreneurial spirit, my advice would be to choose a business partner who matches your values, and will challenge you to grow. Make sure you both remain consistent in character, through the good times and the bad. You’re going to need a lot of resilience, and most importantly, humour!”
Morgan adds: “Don’t give up when it feels like you keep taking knocks. Pick yourself back up, and go again. Believe, believe, believe and it will happen.”
After ten years of AMP, what are you both most proud of?
Alex says: “Reflecting on it all, I think I’m most proud of the journey that we’ve been on together - Morgan and I. It’s taken a LOT of hard work to get to where we are today. We certainly didn’t have a 2.4 fit, a big backer or it all figured out. We just had a dream, and we went for it… making a shit tonne of memories along the way.”
Morgan says: “I’m proud that we’ve proven to ourselves that we can do it. Despite all of life’s nuances!”
About AMP
AMP is an artist representation and production agency that houses a roster of conscious creatives with a shared belief in telling purposeful stories through boundary-breaking content.
The agency represents a range of cool but conscious artists including Elliot Jones, Kell Mitchell and Nico Froehlich who each explore the meaning beyond their art, be that culture, diversity, the human experience, or modern women.
AMP was founded in 2012 by Alexandra Lutostanksa and Morgan Parker, two rule breakers turned best friends turned business partners who dreamed of escaping male egos within the creative industry and building an agency that felt real and connected.
In a bid to give back, Alex and Morgan have launched Be Nice Projects - a gallery space featuring art from award-winning artists, with the sole purpose of giving back to charities which the AMP team resonate with.