Design agency invests in city centre office
DESIGN agency Mobedia is to set up in Manchester city centre office, having received a £400,000 loan facility from the Greater Manchester Loan Fund.
The company, which already has offices in Alderley Edge, Cheshire ands Florida, said the expansion will create up to 10 full time jobs.
Set up in 2005, Mobedia has grown into a full service design agency – clients include Wallgreens Boots Alliance, Suzuki, Kia, and the Home Office.
Johnny Hall, managing director at Mobedia, said: “We are very excited about this next stage in Mobedia’s development and our new office back where our journey began in Manchester. Our passion for the city and its emergence as the home for some of the most innovative new digital companies in the world means there could never be a better time to bring Mobedia home. Not only will the GMLF loan help in the growth of our agency service offering but in the continued expansion and evolution of our SaaS product offering to clients globally. ”
Alongside the establishment of the Manchester office, the GMLF funding will help support the organic growth of Mobedia’s new cloud-based portal, Taploma.
It provides clients with a bespoke eLearning system to improve the process of workforce training. Staff can access the platform through an app and complete the training at their leisure. The platform contains a monitoring and analytics tool for the client to observe completion of training material and assessments, something Mobedia says is particularly pertinent for firms who may need to prove compliance with regulatory standards.
Alex Rothwell, investment manager at Maven Capital Partners, which manages the Greater Manchester Loan Fund, said: “Mobedia is at a transformational stage of its development, having grown consistently over the last six years as a digital agency. With the injection of funding from ourselves and equity holders, coupled with the significant expansion in the senior management team in the business, Mobedia has a great opportunity to develop the strong relationships already held and build the Taploma brand in the market. The GMLF is delighted to support this innovative business and continues to look to provide funding into other SME companies in the Greater Manchester area that are looking to grow.”
Mike Blackburn, chair of the Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “This loan will help a dynamic company re-establish a presence in the heart of Greater Manchester. The digital sector is essential to our future growth, it is worth £1.7bn to the local economy and has seen the greatest growth in jobs in the last five years. I am glad Mobedia will be a part of that, providing employment and continuing to innovate in their eLearning work.”
The GMLF was supported on the transaction by Richard Cowan and Fern Gordon at Pannone Corporate.
