Guest letter: The strategy behind scaling a brand's Instagram by 200K+
How Calla's content catapulted their brand following
Editor’s Note:
We’re so pleased to feature Holly Gaffney as a guest on our Stack today, to spotlight her work growing Calla Shoes using a social content strategy. Holly reflects on her goal as Marketing & Brand Content Manager to optimise Instagram with value-adding content that catalysed awareness, consideration, and ultimately sales. She breaks down her practical approach and takes us behind-the-scenes of developing the content strategy responsible for Calla’s astronomical brand reach and follower growth.
Posting on social media regularly without seeing growth isn’t just frustrating. It’s a sign your social strategy might be missing something deeper. That was exactly my experience at Calla.
Calla is a UK-based footwear brand creating stylish, comfortable shoes for women with bunions and problem feet. And for years we were stuck at less than 14k followers on Instagram. I waved it off with the usual excuses: “It’s just because we’re so niche”, “maybe Instagram just isn’t for us”, “everyone knows that it’s really hard to grow on Instagram these days.” But still, I’d plod on, posting pretty photos of shoes and trying to curate a perfect grid, because Instagram is all about aesthetic, right?
The truth is, it wasn’t just about the number. It felt like we were missing a key part of a solid strategy. Email was working well, SEO and direct search were strong, but social was the one channel we couldn’t rely on. And for a brand that lives online, not being able to use Instagram to drive awareness or interest started to feel like a real weakness.
Sometimes you just need one little thing to inspire action. A comment or a moment that gives you the kick you didn’t even realise you needed… I was interviewing an intern and, in full SWOT mode, she made a comment about how another comfort shoe brand had significantly more followers than us. Which, yes, I knew. Maybe my pride was hurt, or maybe I just had the right burst of motivation, but there and then, I decided that we were going to change things.
And the result? In less than a month, I grew our brand account from 14k to 176k followers. And today, we’re on over 210k.
Here’s how I did it, and how you can too.
Find your WHY
It might seem simple, but the first question to ask is: Why would anyone follow you on social media? Not from your perspective – but from theirs. What are they actually getting out of following your brand?
People don’t follow brands just because they like the product. They follow accounts that offer something extra – entertainment, education, relatability, or a sense of community. If your content isn’t doing any of those things, it’s probably not giving people a reason to stick around or thoughtfully engage with your brand.
These questions helped me focus in:
💡 Why should someone follow you?
💡 What do they actually care about?
💡 Do they want to be entertained? Educated? Reassured? Inspired?
For Calla, I realised that ultimately, our followers just wanted to feel seen. They wanted to know that they weren’t alone in this struggle they’ve had in finding fashionable, comfortable footwear. And they wanted to see a brand finally stand up for them.
Find your WHAT
Once you know why people follow you, the next step is figuring out what to post to align with this. Your WHAT is the type of content and topics you post as well as the format. Whether it’s inspirational reels or educational carousels, your WHAT needs to be thoughtfully chosen with your content goals in mind.
Ideally you should highlight what makes you different and experiment with formats, paying attention to what gets engagement, and doubling down on the content and style that consistently resonates.
For Calla, no one else was talking about fashion and feet in a real, visible way. So I dropped the polished grid and leaned into content that felt honest: try-ons with real feet, founder-led videos, and problem-solution content. It wasn’t always pretty, but it connected.
In terms of format, reels and carousels performed best for us. I focused mostly on reels – especially ones using trending audio and a strong hook in the first few seconds.
We’ve since had plenty of viral videos, and when videos do blow up I post more, quickly, to ride the momentum. Here’s what worked for us:
Reels with a clear, relatable hook in the first few seconds
Problem-solution focused content
Founder-led content – people connect with people
Ignoring negativity – it boosts the algorithm anyway
Find your HOW
Everyone loves to talk about what kind of content to post – use reels, jump on trends, post regularly – but barely anyone talks about how to actually get the content in the first place.
This part is so often overlooked, but without a clear system, it’s hard to start, let alone stay, consistent.
It’ll look different for every team. Maybe it’s working with a few reliable UGC creators, booking a monthly shoot, or blocking out time each week to film in batches. Whatever it is, it needs to be manageable and repeatable.
I work remotely and Jenni is the face of our brand, so every season I go to her house and we spend a full day filming. I arrive with a clear list of content we need - things like new product try-ons, talking through features, storytelling snippets - and we make sure we get it all.
That filming day gives me everything I need to create reels and other content throughout the season. It’s a system that works for us. Because the reality is, even the best content strategy won’t work if you don’t have a way to get the content in the first place.
The results
Ultimately, using social media as a brand is about connecting with your ideal audience. Not just posting for the sake of it, but showing up with something they want to see in a way that feels real and relevant. By doing this, you can build an audience that’s genuinely engaged and that values and respects your brand.
One of our biggest strategic goals is to grow in the USA, and Instagram is helping us do that. 36% of our following is now US-based, and we did see a lift in sales as our following started to grow. Looking ahead, we’d love to get into showrooms and explore wholesale opportunities, and having a bigger, more engaged audience gives us more credibility as we move in that direction.
We’re also seeing the impact directly from our customers. In our end-of-year survey, 12.1% of customers in 2024 said they found us through Instagram, up from just 3.8% the year before. That kind of shift shows we’re not just building a following, we’re building real connection and turning that connection into action.
It’s also important to remember that social platforms are always changing, so you have to be willing to evolve with it. What worked six months ago might not work now, and that’s normal. So keep testing, keep trying new things, and keep your finger on the pulse of both trends and updates.
Calla is now at 213k followers on Instagram and we’re thrilled with how far we’ve come. But even now, there are things I want to improve. We’re not doing it all perfectly, and that’s fine. You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to keep showing up, stay curious, and figure out what works for your brand and its target audiences.
Holly Gaffney is the Marketing & Brand Content Manager for Calla Shoes.
With a background in Marketing and E-commerce, she now leads marketing, brand, and creative content for the shoe company, helping to build a global brand that’s redefining comfort and style for women everywhere. She’s based in Manchester, UK, but works fully remotely and travels regularly in her role.
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