Grey market helps Millennium to grow

From the archive, first published Tuesday 21st Feb 2006.

A Shipley-based marketing agency which specialises in catering for older consumers is heading towards a listing on the AIM market.

The Millennium Group is expanding and has acquired Cheltenham-based direct marketing agency DMS for £6.25 million. Millennium, which has its headquarters on Leeds Road, Windhill Manor, now has a turnover of £25 million and is looking to make more purchases.

Now in its tenth year, the company was created as the first marketing agency to address the wealthy over 50s consumer sector. It assists companies with direct marketing techniques, including press advertising, new media and broadcast media campaigns.

AIM gives companies from all countries and sectors access to the market at an earlier stage of their development, allowing them to experience life as a public company.

Skipton-based Hebridean Island Cruises and Tesco and are among the companies to benefit from Millennium's expertise.

Millennium group managing director Martin Smith said: "We specialise in assisting companies who want to talk and communicate with mature consumers.

"It's a very big market and there are more than 20 million adults in that sector. We deal with big insurance companies, Spanish Property people and companies who deal with pre-arranged funeral plans.

"A lot of agencies don't like working with these kinds of sectors and tend to be youth focused."

Most growth for the agency group, which employs nearly 200 staff, has occurred organically as it created a full range of divisions to allow it to perform most operations internally.

It has a print facility and letter shop in Keighley, called Coltec Parker, where 50 of its staff are employed, while its office in Shipley employing nearly 100 has a creative studio, media department and account management office.

Growth will come from purchasing other marketing communications agencies. In order to make more acquisitions, it has created a support team of local organisations, including Barclays Business Centre in Leeds, Bradford solicitors Last Cawthra Feather and corporate accountants Baker Tilly.

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