London, 11 April: Independent integrated agency Four Communications Group (Four) has been named no.73 in the Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100 league table, which ranks Britain’s 100 private companies with the fastest-growing profits over the latest three years.
The listing of Four – the only communications agency featured on the league table, comes on the back of a record-breaking year for the London-headquartered agency, which employs more than 200 staff and also has offices in Edinburgh, Cardiff, Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Chief executive, Nan Williams commented: “This is a great accolade for the business and demonstrates the phenomenal organic and acquisitive growth success we’ve achieved over the years. With the backing of the Business Growth Fund we are now set for further growth which means we can deliver an even better service to clients.”
In 2015 the group billed fee income of £20.8 million compared with £14.6 million in the previous year – growth of 38%. Profitability rose by 39% over 2014. Last year, Four secured £10 million of investment from BGF (Business Growth Fund), the UK’s most active provider of growth capital to small and mid-sized businesses, and an additional debt facility of £5m from HSBC.
Four acquired three agencies in the year – Welsh design and PR agency FBA, financial & professional services agency Broadgate Mainland and healthcare media planning & buying agency MSA Media. There are further acquisitions planned for 2016.
Four was founded in 2001 and has more than 600 clients across a number of sectors including Etihad Airways, The Man Booker Prizes, Sotheby’s International Realty and Kinleigh Folkard and Hayward. Notable campaigns run by Four include UK Government PR campaigns for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Cyber Streetwise, integrated & digital campaigns for the Wales Millennium Centre and Agatha Christie and marketing and media campaigns for St George.
Further enquiries: Nan Williams – nan.williams@fourcommunications.com – 07774 741518
About Four Communications Group
Four is a leading integrated agency headquartered Four Communications Group with offices in London, Edinburgh, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The company employs more than 200 staff and has more than 600 clients including Etihad Airways, The Man Booker Prizes, Sotheby’s International Realty, InterContinental Hotels Group and American Express. Its key services include public relations, public affairs, marketing, sponsorship, digital & content & media buying with a particular focus on the property, travel, culture, healthcare, education, financial services and public sectors. www.fourcommunications.com
About BGF: BGF (Business Growth Fund) is the UK’s most active provider of growth capital to small and mid-sized businesses. The companies it backs are privately-owned or listed on AIM, and typically have revenues of between £5m and £100m. BGF makes initial investments usually of between £2m-£10m and can provide additional funding to support further growth. The investment provided is typically in the form of equity in return for a minority equity stake. BGF Ventures is the largest UK dedicated venture capital company for earlier stage technology related businesses. Typical investments are between £1m and £6m. BGF is an independent company with capital of up to £2.5 billion and is backed by five of the UK’s main banking groups – Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Standard Chartered.