We are a creative partner for ambitious brands that are hungry to grow
Based in Manchester.
Trusted globally by brands including Yankee Candle, AO.com, Sharps, Co-op and Nike.
Our unique Motivation + Memorability approach is proven to work
Creative solutions that blend behavioural science and modern marketing science to maximise effectiveness.
We solve problems, not just sell services
Our problem-solving programmes are delivered by a team of highly experienced people who deliver solutions, not just sell you our services.
Working with us feels good
Making memorable work means building memorable relationships, so we emphasise building relationships that put people first.
Our results speak for themselves
Creatively effective
Our System1 average Star rating is Exceptional at 5.0, Spike rating is Strong at 1.19, and Fluency is Good at 85.
Industry recognised creative excellence
Award-winning creative, validated by the industry and proven to drive growth for the UK’s most ambitious brands.
Highly accredited
We are an IPA Member and IPA Trained. Our Managing Director, Sue Benson, serves as the IPA Chair for England and Wales.
Track record of delivering growth
Our creative partnership solidified Sharps Furniture Group's position as the UK's #1 fitted furniture brand. Growing a £60M annual turnover to £135M+.
Loved by clients
Making memorable work means building memorable relationships. It’s why our NPS is currently an industry-beating +59.
Happy clients
Our world-class, tight-knit team
Sue Benson
Chief Executive Officer
A Titan of the industry, Sue is a visionary leader who finds her "happy place" in the fast-paced world of retail. Beyond her 16-year partnership with Sharps and her work with AO, she serves as the Head of IPA North, cementing her status as a primary architect of the region's advertising landscape.
Dorina D’Ambrosio
Executive Creative Director
With a distinguished 36-year career, Dorina is the undisputed “Queen of Home.” She possesses an unrivalled ability to elevate domestic brands into household names, lending her creative mastery to sector leaders such as Yankee Candle, Sharps, Housing Units, and Unbound.
Ashley Johnson
Senior Account Executive
A rising force within the agency, Ash is known for her energy and ability to keep everything running smoothly. She plays the key role in the day-to-day momentum of our flagship accounts, ensuring excellence and seamless delivery for global powerhouses such as Bradstone, Yankee Candle, Holcim, and Sharps.
James Ballinger
Client Services Director
James brings 15 years of leadership expertise to the agency, recently steering the team through a successful transition to Employee Ownership (EOT). He is a specialist in scaling the agency's most significant accounts, delivering strategic growth for heavyweights including Holcim, Bradstone, Breville, and Karndean.
Mark Griffiths
Senior Creative Artworker
A 20-year mainstay of the agency’s creative engine, Mark is the technical specialist responsible for the flawless execution of our most complex campaigns. With a career defined by meticulous precision, he has acted as the visual gatekeeper for a portfolio of heavyweight brands, including Sharps, Holcim, Bradstone, Housing Units and Grafton.
Sam Clegg
Planner
Sam is the agency’s architect of insight, expertly bridging the gap between rigorous research and compelling narrative. A multi-disciplinary strategist, he uncovers the deep-market truths that form the backbone of our campaigns, before distilling them into high-performing content. His dual mastery of analytical planning and creative execution ensures that every brand story is grounded in data and delivered with impact.
Neil Bennett
Chief Strategy Officer
Neil is a definitive authority in the alcohol sector with 20 years of experience making global brands unmissable, including Stella Artois, Heineken, Jim Beam and Johnnie Walker.
Harry Williams
Deputy Creative Director
Harry is a creative powerhouse with 15 years of experience in crafting compelling visual narratives. As Deputy Creative Director, he bridges the gap between high-level strategy and bold execution, ensuring every campaign resonates with precision and impact.
Janey Baker
Marketing Manager
A former Account Director turned Marketing Manager, Janey possesses a deep, foundational understanding of how to scale major brands, including Sharps, Joseph Holt, and Bradstone. She now leverages this insider expertise to elevate the agency’s own profile, ensuring our creative capabilities are known and sought after by the industry’s most ambitious brands.
FAQs
-
We combine behavioural science with creative strategy to solve commercial challenges. This dual approach is proven to increase both short-term sales and long-term brand equity.
-
It is our unique framework that blends psychological triggers with distinct creative assets. We ensure your marketing motivates action today while building a memorable brand for tomorrow.
-
Based in Manchester, we give you access to a world-class creative hub with deep roots in the North’s retail and business landscape without a premium. Providing ambitious national and international brands with more value and better results.
-
We use System1 testing, the industry gold standard, to measure emotional response. Our campaigns consistently achieve ‘Exceptional’ ratings for star, spike, and fluency metrics.
-
Absolutely. We have a proven track record, such as helping Sharps Furniture Group scale from £60M to over £135M in annual turnover through strategic creative partnership.
Our services
Research
-
Deep-dive analysis into human motivations to inform evidence-based marketing strategies.
-
Aligning internal leadership and external partners to ensure strategic buy-in and brand consistency.
-
Data-driven analysis to identify broad market trends and validate consumer behavioural patterns.
-
In-depth focus groups and interviews to uncover the "why" behind consumer decision-making.
-
Comprehensive evaluation of the competitive landscape to identify gaps and growth opportunities.
-
Using System1 metrics to validate creative impact and emotional response before committing to media spend.
-
Tracking real-time audience perceptions to align brand messaging with current motivations.
Strategy
-
Defining a unique market space for your brand to ensure it stands out and scales effectively.
-
Organising brands and products to maximise clarity and commercial growth.
-
Creating memorable brand and product names rooted in linguistic and behavioural memorability.
-
Defining your Employee Value Proposition to align internal culture with the brand promise.
-
Articulating your why to drive authentic engagement and long-term customer loyalty.
-
Establishing the foundational mission, vision and values that guide every brand action and decision.
-
Applying behavioural science to optimise the customer journey across digital and physical touchpoints.
Brand Identity
-
Developing distinctive visual systems and assets that drive recognition.
-
Establishing a unique tone of voice that resonates with your audience’s motivations.
-
A motion system to bring the brand to life through animation and movement.
-
Defining the aesthetic vision and style to ensure consistent, distinctive and motivating brand communication.
-
Creating bespoke illustration systems that differentiate the brand and simplify complex information.
-
Selecting and designing typefaces that reinforce brand personality and ensure legibility across all platforms.
-
Developing custom icon sets that act as a distinct visual shorthand for the brand’s services and values.
-
Designing packaging that drives conversion on-shelf and creates memorable experiences.
-
Building scalable frameworks and guidelines to maintain brand consistency.
Campaign
-
Delivering bold, multi-channel creative solutions that solve specific commercial challenges and drive measurable growth.
-
Creating immersive physical spaces and experiential marketing that bring the brand to life in a live environment.
-
Crafting high-performance digital assets and social campaigns that motivate action and engagement across the customer journey.
-
Designing large-scale visual systems and point-of-sale campaigns for physical retail and showroom environments.
-
Building employee engagement through culture-led campaigns that align internal teams with the brand promise.