Journey Further and MRE join forces to form new agency

Journey Further has announced the formation of Journey Further Influence after Mr Skidmore acquired search consultancy, MRE, for an undisclosed sum.

Journey Further Influence will be a provider of public relations, search engine optimisation and influencer marketing.

The acquisition will see its co-founders appointed as senior team members, with Alex Postance taking on the role of managing director and Steve Walker becoming SEO director.

Overseeing the PR will be Beth Nunnington, who joins the team from Brass, as PR Director, after previously working with Mr Skidmore at Shackleton, now Jaywing PR.

The new senior team has over 10 years of experience on a vast range of PR and SEO clients such as Apple, Disney, Tesco, Ann Summers, Leeds Building Society and JD Sports.

The expansion comes after a hugely 18 months for Journey Further, which has seen the start-up agency quickly grow from two to 26 staff working with clients such as Matalan, Principal Hotel Company and MYA Cosmetic Surgery.

Mr Skidmore, founder & Group CEO of Journey Further, said: “After making an astounding impact with our clarity at speed approach, it has quickly become clear that the SEO and PR industry is crying out for a similar shake up, which is what we aim to do with our Influence offering.

“By applying the same strategy and connecting clients directly with the best talent in the industry, we can deliver amazing results fast, without the need for complicated and expensive campaigns.

“We have already hired experienced PR strategists to deliver both traditional and digital PR campaigns and I believe our SEO team is already the best in the industry. With Influence we expect Journey Further’s growth to accelerate further, so we’re always on the lookout for ambitious and talented people.”

As of November 2018, Journey Further will be moving into its brand-new 5000 sq2 office on Leeds Dock.

Journey Further is the latest venture from Mr Skidmore, who previously he grew Epiphany from two to 160 staff before selling it to Jaywing for £18m in 2014.

Journey Further mainly operates in the digital marketing space for the retail and travel sectors. Notable brands that it is currently working with include Sky, Moet, Claire’s Accessories and Christy Towels.

It also just netted a huge contract win in the shape of Airtasker, an Australian firm just raised $30m to launch into the UK and functions as an Uber-style service for home improvement personnel..

The deal was won from a 10 agency pitch and Journey Further is now launching it into London and across the UK in the next few months before moving into Europe.

Journey Further has an unusual approach to marketing in that it runs a books club. Every month it shares a new book that has impacted on the firm, along themes such as marketing, entrepreneurship, motivation and psychology.