Arena Creative helping to get neighbouring firms on global stage

BRANDING and design company Arena Creative is reaping the rewards of playing a key role in helping other businesses in its home town Bolton to become major players on the global stage.

Combining strong business and personal relationships with expertise offering services including internal branding, wall graphics, and staff engagement alongside digital and print has made the business part of the success story of a myriad of leading local firms.

This is thanks to the philosophy of founder and boss Martin Dickson whose close personal relationships have crossed over into the business he runs alongside wife and fellow director Anita as part of a five-strong team of creatives and an army of freelancers.

It’s an organically evolved strategy which has driven the company towards an annual turnover target of more than £500,000 at the end of a three-year growth plan.

Arena has participated in the rise of London Stock Exchange-listed white goods specialist AO – now disrupting the market in Germany, where Arena sent a team of fitters over for a week to fit out their new HQ in Bergheim.

Meanwhile, Martin’s company has forged an alliance with iconic Bolton baking brand Carrs Pasties, soon to celebrate its 80th birthday, and now a well-known favourite of broadcaster Chris Evans and other celebrities.

Arena has also been hired by one of Bolton’s rising entrepreneurial businesses – award-winning energy switching specialist Love Energy Savings, creating an internal BUZZ brand to help staff achieve their targets.

The company has just completed a second rebrand for fast-growing marketing recruitment company Forward Role, founded and run by his life-long friend Steven Thompson and now based in Croxley House on Lloyd Street, Manchester as it celebrates its 10th anniversary.

And almost by dint of fate, Gresham Office Furniture director Julian Roebuck and Martin who are neighbours in Chorley have become friends and cycle to work together once a week.

That personal relationship has crossed over into business with Arena Creative carrying out branding and creative work on the £45m turnover international company’s Bolton showroom.

As well as helping companies like AO become international, Arena Creative is also showing signs it has global potential, by striking up a relationship with firms like Janssen Cosmetics.

It was Martin’s chance meeting with its UK franchise owner Krestyna Batty when she was visiting a business she supplies, Serenity Hair and Beauty, beneath his offices on Chorley New Road, Horwich, which led her to hiring Arena’s training room.

“We got on like a house on fire,” said Martin.

Krestyna runs the UK franchise with 85 salons under her belt and manages the distribution from Germany.

The man behind the business, Ulrich Janssen, has since visited Arena Creative’s offices and Martin’s company is now helping with translated branding across its China, Russia, Spain, Holland, Germany, France and Mexico territories.

Despite that international success Martin enjoys continuing to cement his longstanding relationships through his business activities.

This was no more in evidence than when he worked with Bolton company TVD run by Matt Brown, who grew up in the next street to Martin.

TVD is now a leading provider of audio visual products to many large businesses and retailers. Arena has created various brands within the company’s group and has done wall graphics in its offices.

Martin’s company is also continuing to work with its first landlord Bolton Arena, with which it still has a strong bond after seven years, and is now realigning its various brands and offerings.

In the last 12 months, Arena Creative has worked with Bolton Wanderers Football Club and rebranded local estate agent Miller Metcalfe.

Closer to home, Arena Creative is being asked to support a joint charity ball with Bolton Lads and Girls Club and Bolton Hospice – traditionally competing charities with design work in November.

Martin’s company has also delivered a leaflet for Bolton Clinical Commissioning Group NHS to help medical practitioners spot the signs of susceptibility to radicalisation and extremism.

Martin said: “We’ve rolled this out, and within one month, they’ve seen an increase of safeguarding prevent referrals which is amazing.

“But NHS England has looked at what is going on in Bolton, awarded it as best practice and now want to roll it out across England healthcare services, because they think it’s such a good piece of communication as it is well put together.”

The genial boss has reserved his highest praise for his staff, particularly wife Anita and their most senior hire to date, 26-year-old Bury man Steven Cavanagh who is heading up the studio after Martin stepped aside to concentrate on forging relationships and winning new business when he restructured the business recently.

“Stepping back from the studio myself was a difficult thing to do, but in Steven I have someone whose talent I trust and who gets on really well with our clients,” he said.

Of Anita, he eulogised: “She is our non-designer, so we keep things from her and show them to her when they’re finished and she gives us valuable feedback.

“Also, because she has a background in human resources, she is very good at coaching the staff.

“We’ve gone through this transition and she’s been there helping us doing all these objectives, reviews, appraisals, working with me and Steven to listen more and ask coaching questions.

“She sits down with all of us and helps us do our jobs better, including me.”

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