How to grow your business (0-50)

Speakers

Craig Johnson – Kagool

Craig has worked with many growing digital agencies in the North West over the last 20 years and has a reputation for helping agencies to grow in terms of revenue and headcount.

Initially he built in-house digital agencies for CN Group then Guardian Media Group to provide digital services such as design and build to traditional media clients. This provided a profitable digital side-line for traditional business from clients like Manchester Arena and GMPTE.

He then spent six years heading up all of sales and marketing for Rippleffect as Commercial Director. He increased the service offering and built a profitable team providing retained digital marketing services for clients such as SEO and PPC. The agency grew from 16 to 50 plus in this time, with turnover increasing by 600%. The company was acquired by Trinity Mirror plc.

From 2011 he took on the role of Head of Digital at Cheetham Bell JWT, doubling revenues and growing the team by securing digital business from the likes of Magnet Kitchens, John West, Baxters Foods, Famous Grouse, CSL Sofas and CP Foods. By the time he left the digital arm was a profitable enterprise that accounted for 25% of the total agency revenue.

Craig then consulted for North West digital agencies including magneticNorth, HitSearch, Yoma and Worship Digital before joining Kagool as a Director in 2015. He founded the Manchester office, which now has a head count of 21, many of whom are employed in a lucrative digital marketing services arm of the business that Craig set-up. The total head count has grown from 35 to 65 in this time and he has generated new business from the likes of Manchester City, Skipton Building Society, Irwin Mitchell and Together Money.

Nick Rhind – CTI Digital

As CEO of CTI Digital, I’ve built an 80 person strong digital agency, offering digital solutions and campaigns for respected brands around the globe. Established in 2003, in the heart of Manchester, we have become an industry leader by constantly investing in talented individuals, advancing technology and our clients’ visions. We have a wealth of experience providing award-winning, strategically informed web-based solutions for a diverse range of clients, from public sector organisations, like the Greater London Authority, to leisure brands, such as Merlin Entertainments.

Liane Grimshaw – SupaReal

SupaReal has been operating for four and a half years and employs 10 people. We are still below the £1 million turnover mark but have grown around 70% year on year.

During a career that spans more than 24 years working in the Manchester digital and marketing community, Liane has held roles in design, client services, marketing, senior management, consultancy and a number of board level and non exec positions. She’s been around the block shall we say – her words not ours!!

In more recent times she has been focused on SupaReal, a specialist B2B content marketing agency – her first foray into starting and developing her own company, dancing to her own tune, and putting into practice what she truly believes in.

In this brutally honest interview (and those who know her, know how forthright she can be), we will explore her views on the industry, starting a business, running someone else’s, building a team and how she has managed to build resilience and success while faced with numerous trials and tribulations along the way.

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Josie Saville – 4and20Million

Josie is on a mission to change the way we work!

Josie co-founded 4and20million to help make businesses more productive through increasing staff motivation. She is passionate about helping companies become places where people turn up in the morning full of positive energy and leave at the end of the day feeling proud and satisfied with the work they’ve done.

4and20million are not about introducing smoothies and yoga as a quick-fix solution. We help businesses thrive by creating high-performance cultures that enable all employees to bring their best, increasing productivity, profit and reducing churn.

When not helping ambitious companies thrive, Josie plays tennis, netball and runs around after her two children who ensure that she’s constantly kept on her toes!

Ian Finch – Mando

Ian co-founded digital agency Mando in 1997 and is the sole remaining Shareholder and CEO. Whilst being a digital veteran it hasn’t stopped him achieving repeated inclusion in the BIMA Hot 100s in the last few years as he’s led a reimagining and renaissance of the agency growing it from 30 to 60 staff since 2014. Following the buy-out in 2013, such was the turnaround, he got ‘Agency Leader of the Year’ in 2015 and has continued to build on this success over the past few years.