Bristol corporate PR and communications agency Ambitious has rounded off 12 months of solid growth by celebrating seven new business wins and making two strategic hires.
With the agency expanding to 27 staff and on track to meet its £1.65m revenue target, Ambitious has this year secured its position as one of the largest independent PR agencies in Bristol and the South West.
Among its new retained clients are Tunstall Healthcare Group, GlobalGiving UK and Harley Row Clinic as well as a short project with UCAS.
Further growth also came from the agency’s existing client base expanding their remit.
Its latest two key hires, Maria Dickson and Chloe Tonkin, pictured, follow on from four hires made earlier this year.
Maria joins as marketing director, a newly created role signalling the agency’s commitment to more integrated campaign activations. She will also lead Ambitious’s marketing strategy as it looks to expand.
Maria has more than 12 years’ experience working in award-winning communications agencies in the pharma and not-for-profit sectors and, most recently, lead all national marketing and social media for Girlguiding, including a new brand rollout – the largest in the organisation’s 113-year history.
Chloe, who has 10-plus years working agency-side across B2C and B2B-focused sectors in the UK and New Zealand, joins as a senior PR consultant and copywriter to support the firm’s growth.
Her experience spans technology, fast-moving consumer goods and healthcare among other sectors, including campaigns for big-name clients such as Samsung, American Express, HSBC, Specsavers and Unilever.
Ambitious, which is female-founded, owned and run, has grown steadily since since its launch in 2012.
Director Sarah Woodhouse said: ‘This year we’ve seen the same challenges as other agencies with a lag between briefs being awarded and work then starting but we’ve had a strong new business pipeline.
“The ink has dried on seven new contracts in the last quarter alone and, together with strong client retention, puts us in a strong position for 2024.
“CEOs are striving to build trust signals with customers and prospects, driving up the need for third-party endorsement.
“We’re seeing growth from organisations that want to build understanding and earn these trust signals from a range of audiences – and we have a key role in driving these strategic communications.
“We’ve also seen uptake for our work supporting companies to integrate their marketing and PR efforts.”
Ambitious co-founder Lis Anderson added: “We’re excited to grow our team again this year and welcome Maria and Chloe into the fold.
“They each bring a wealth of experience to complement our existing team, ensuring that we can deliver the best possible service to clients as we look ahead to 2024.”
“Ensuring we have a happy and healthy team is of utmost importance to us. We’re proud of our growing team and a record of three-and-a-half years with no staff attrition – a testament to our team culture. We’re excited about the year ahead.”
