Dragons’ Den star Steven Bartlett has resigned as a director of the PR company he acquired in 2022.
The 32-year-old’s digital marketing and communications company, Flight Story, bought Soho-based R.Agency in January 2022 for an undisclosed sum.
R.Agency, originally known as Rebecca Abigail after its founder Rebecca Ridge, was founded in 2013 and has worked with the likes of Tinder, Hinge and what3words.
According to documents filed at Companies House, Bartlett stepped down as a director of R.Agency (listed as Rebecca Abigail PR) on July 16th, 2025.
On May 20th, 2025, Flight Story Group ceased to be ‘a person with significant control’ – the same day 36-year-old Ridge is listed as resigning as a director of Flight Story Group.
Neither Bartlett, who also resigned as a director of nutrition brand Huel in January 2024, or Ridge have made a public statement.
At the time of the 2022 deal, Ridge was quoted as saying: “I have known Steven personally and professionally for many years and we share not only our drive, energy and values but our ambition to deliver work that stands out for the world’s most disruptive brands.
“To have Steve’s vision and forward-thinking nature coupled with our talented teams is something that I am extremely excited to bring to the agency.”
At the same time the Diary of a CEO podcast said: “I was first introduced to R. Agency seven years ago when looking for a communications agency at Social Chain.
“We brought Rebecca and the team on board and R. Agency became critically important long-term partners as well as friends and we’ve subsequently worked together on multiple projects.
“After working with more than 10 PR agencies around the world, I could not find a better partner than R Agency.
“They are the very best. PR and communications is a crucial part of the Flight Story offering and finding the right people with a shared vision was paramount.
Achieving great things
“Rebecca and team bring that. We’re delighted to welcome R. Agency into the Flight Story family and look forward to achieving great things together.”
R.Agency describes itself as a boutique agency working with the world’s most visionary founders and innovative brands.
Ridge was listed in Management Today’s prestigious 35 Women Under 35.
Her profile read: “After spending time in rural Zambia working with local communities affected by HIV, Ridge started her own PR agency, Rebecca Abigail. Aged just 23, she bagged Tinder as her first client, launching the brand in the UK market and taking it from an unknown dating app to the highest-grossing app on the Apple app store.
“Her Soho-based business now has 20 employees and a seven-figure turnover, without external funding or investment. Ridge is currently enrolled on an executive leadership course at Oxford’s Saïd Business school.”