Lakestar Media sets up in London

MANCHESTER-based digital agency Lakestar Media has expanded with the launch of a new London office.

The agency, which last year had a turnover of £2.6m and employs 30 staff at its Manchester base, aims to have a 10-strong operation at its new office in Covent Garden within the next 12 months.

Chief executive Neil McKay said the move was part of its plan to achieve annual revenues of £5m by 2012.

He said: “The home and heart of Lakestar will always be in Manchester and there’s huge potential to continue expanding our business here.

“We felt a permanent presence in London would support the delivery of our mid-term growth plan and help us get closer to those clients and prospects based in and around the capital.

“We’ve already secured a number of accounts in London over the last six months so we now have a platform to grow our offering. This is all about exporting our ‘open book’ approach to new clients in new regions, while applying the same focus on results, service, transparency and value.”

The company advises more than 50 clients across the financial services, travel and leisure and retail sectors. Clients include Butlins, The Co-operative Group, Oddbins and Pacel2go.com.