We are taking a look at some of the highlights across all of Istoria Group this past 12 months. Here are our top 10 highlights:

Ten-Striving to lead by example

Business Leader invited CEO Sam Rowe to participate in a roundtable on Sustainability.

Our Chairwoman Claire Menzies is a Fellow at the RSA and elected as Design Insider Ambassador.

Claire Menzies was invited to judge the newly launched Great British Business Heroes Awards, whilst Associate Creative Director Emma Carter was invited to judge the FX Awards.

WeConnect International, the governing body awarding Women Business Enterprise status, invited Sam Rowe to do a talk on their International Day to corporate members and other WBEs on achieving international success as a SME.

WeConnect Europe also conducted and interview with Sam on balancing people, planet and profit.

Both our Chairwoman and CEO were named as Bristol’s most influential women by The Bristol Post.

Our Sustainability & Development Director was re-elected to the ESSA Board and Chairs their Diversity & Inclusivity arm.

nine - We’ve had our Science Based Targets approved

We are proving our commitment to building a sustainable future, by letting the science dictate our course of action.

We are proud to have set a science-based target, positioning us as leaders in the low-carbon transition.

Our emissions reduction targets have been set through the Science Based Targets initiative, with levels required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The targets covering greenhouse gas emissions from Ignition’s operations (scopes 1 and 2) are consistent with reductions required to keep warming to 1.5°C, the most ambitious goal of the Paris Agreement.

We are already carbon neutral for scopes 1 and 2 of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and aim to be completely carbon neutral by 2030.

eight - Significant new client wins

Group-wide, we won 13 significant new clients across different sectors – through pitching and word-of-mouth referrals!

2 x new pharmaceutical clients
1 x new aesthetic beauty client
2 x new higher education clients
5 x new hospitality clients
2 x new retail clients
1 x new technology client

We look forward to partnering with both our new and existing clients during 2023 to continue creating excellent work!

seven - Supporting the UN’s SDGs

As a women owned business, we’re supporting girls’ education in Africa through CAMFED. We help with school fees for their secondary education, and buy their sanitary wear and uniforms.

We’re also supporting The Cordillera Azul National Park project, located in Peru’s high forest between the Andes and the Amazon Basin. It supports 26 community based businesses, with 40% of jobs held by women.

This project is working in a huge landscape of 37 million hectares (nearly the size of the Netherlands) to protect 16 million hectares of threatened forest.

In addition, a wide community driven programme is helping tens of thousands of local people gain access to basic services such as sanitation, healthcare and education.

This means the only SDGs we are not yet contributing to are 2 – Zero hunger, 7 – Affordable and clean energy, 11 – Sustainable cities and communities, and 14 – Life below water.

By 2030, Istoria Group aims to support all of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.

six - A great marketing year!

Across the Group, we won 13 new clients from the pharmaceutical, aerospace, higher education, hospitality and technology sectors.

We’ve generated 128 pieces of press, across the UK, USA, Europe & Asia. Ranging from regional news to business news, and from design, exhibitions & events, retail and hospitality trade publications, to architecture, construction, finance and technology publications.

One of the key features was by Sam Rowe, on Futureproofing exhibition design which appeared in two print and online features, covering physical, virtual and hybrid design, the metaverse and sustainability.

Across the group, we won 5 awards, were finalists 4 times and awaiting 1 outcome.

Collectively, our agencies mustered up over 100,000+ impressions on social media.

five - Investing in our people

Our teams are growing. This year we welcomed new starters Bryn Isaac - Finance Director, Saskia Horne – Office Manager, Hannah Preston – Account Director, Sam Morris – Head of Operations, Paul Hampson – Warehouse Manager.

As part of our commitment to Employee Wellbeing, we have appointed 4 new Mental Health First Aiders, who will be the first point of contact for any of our team in times of crisis.

Congratulations to everyone who got promoted from within: Hannah Jardine to Sustainability & Development Director and Claire Yoxall to Project Director.

We shined a spotlight on our Leadership team. Building on our company ethos of being a ‘personable’ and friendly company, we got to know what made each leader tick through a Q&A.

Four - Working with BBC Apprentice Winner Harpreet Kaur

Istoria Group agency Phoenix Wharf designed a hospitality concept for Harpreet Kaur, winner of this year’s BBC television series ‘The Apprentice’.

The new project was funded by investment from the show’s host, Lord Sugar, who is also a partner in the business.
The design story features on the cover of retail magazine A1’s December issue.

THREE - Our #IWD initiative reached 6,500+ people

As a women-owned business, we celebrated women’s achievements in support of creating a gender equal world.

Our International Women’s Day initiative reached 6,502 people across Group social media platforms.
The theme for 2022 was ‘Break the Bias’ – imagining a gender equal world.
Our guests’ comprised entrepreneurs, politicians, governing bodies, artists, retailers, CEOs and academia.

TWO - Our incubator companies successfully ‘hatched’ from the Incubator Hub

Istoria Group is dedicated to innovation, entrepreneurship and the local economy. As part of this ethos, we support promising small businesses in their growth and future direction.

The ‘Incubator Hub’ forms part of Istoria Group’s ethos of supporting entrepreneurialism and helping great ideas to thrive.

Both the Group’s Incubator Hub companies – Solverboard and children’s book publisher I Am A Bookworm - became fully-independent businesses in 2022. Solverboard was acquired by AIM-listed Sopheon in 2022 and changed their name to Acclaim Ideas.

You can read more about I am a Bookworm becoming independent here.

You can read more about Solverboard’s acquisition here.

One - We became a #BCorp

Using business as a force for good

B Corp Certification is awarded to businesses who are ‘leaders in the global movement for an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy.’
This transformative accreditation also extends to Istoria Group’s constituent companies too - Ignition, Tiny Spark and Phoenix Wharf.
The founding principles of B Corp – that business can be a force for good – is also what drives us. Istoria Group was founded on the principle of balancing people and planet with profit, whilst delivering great creative work for our clients.
⁠Conducting business sustainably and with purpose has always been part of our DNA, ensuring that the long-term perspective always wins out over short-term gain.
So we’re feeling really proud about becoming a B Corp and we’re most excited about what comes next. And integrity and transparency will always remain at the heart of everything we do. We believe that together, we can make a difference!⁠

The Istoria Group agencies are:

Ignition | Exhibitions, Events & Experiences

Tiny Spark | Purposeful Digital Experiences

Phoenix Wharf | Interior Design & Branding

Thank you for reading.

From everyone across the Istoria Group, thank you for your continued support and we look forward to sharing more highlights with you next year!

Top 10 Highlights of 2022

Our top 10 highlights of

2022