Readysalted and ready to grow

Newcastle-based digital agency Readysalted has announced ambitious plans to treble its growth after expanding its client base in the UK and Europe. Here, Simon Honeywood, founder and managing director, explains how his business – now celebrating its 20th anniversary – has transformed from a one-man-band to a team developing digital solutions for clients across the globe.

When I moved to Newcastle in 1997, to study what was then known as multimedia design, it was the early days of web design, and I didn’t know a single person.

Now, more than 25 years later, the team and I have had the pleasure of working with some brilliant clients on their web and digital transformation projects, including Newcastle, Durham and Cambridge universities.

We have a strong client base across Europe, have recently welcomed a trio of business development and marketing professionals, delivered our biggest digital transformation project to date and achieved our highest turnover yet.

If you’d told me all those years ago that what started out as me working solo on a freelance basis would grow into a company that is projected to hit half a million pounds in turnover by 2025, and celebrating its 20th anniversary, I’d probably have laughed.

Transforming the way people work

Today, Readysalted focuses on UX (user experience) design and digital transformation development, and we combine strong design with a user-focused approach.

We take the time to really understand the businesses we work with, what their customers need when they visit a website, and how they behave online.

This often means we have no idea initially what kind of website or web app we’re going to build when we start out; it all depends on the individual business and their end users.

We also work with clients on digital transformation, which is something that can save people hours and hours of time and completely change the way they work – it really is transformative.

Our client base is incredibly varied, from medical scientists and manufacturers through to the education sector and beyond.

Essentially, we can make a piece of software you can run an entire company with, which is bespoke to fit the needs of each client.

Staying ahead of the curve

We’ve always been ahead of the curve when it comes to new technology, and we use what we’ve learnt over the last 20 years to over-deliver and add value for our clients.

This means we get really good feedback, and I like to think that people genuinely enjoy working with us.

Businesses often stay with us for many years.

In fact, Newcastle University was one of the very first organisations we ever completed work for, and we still work with them today, having created digital platforms for millions of pounds worth of research projects over the years.

Clear plans for growth

We’ve recently taken on three more members of staff, increased the amount of work we’re doing in London and Europe, and seen the business grow by 30 per cent in the last year alone.

We’re projected to hit half a million pounds in turnover by 2025, and I’ve got a really clear plan for continuing that growth over the next few years; with the goal to treble the size of the business and reach a million pounds of turnover by 2028.

This year, we’ll be taking on more developers and designers, and will be looking into opening an office in London, as we’re working with more and more clients in the capital.

And, of course, I want to keep doing the work we love, continuing to receive great feedback and working with brilliant clients here in the North East too.

It’s a really exciting time.

And…why Readysalted?

People are always so curious about why on earth we decided to name ourselves after a popular crisp flavour, so perhaps I should explain.

It dates right back to my early student days when I was sharing a flat with two other graphic designers.

We were drinking pints in a grotty pub, where the only food on offer was ready salted crisps, and we joked about how one day we’d start a design business and that’s what we would call it.

Years later, when I needed to create my own brand, the name just stuck.

Having undergone a recent brand refresh, our website looks very different, and we have big plans for the future, but we’re still very much the same

Readysalted team, with the same values at our core.

As steadfast as the crisp flavour itself, we pride ourselves on simply being a great and reliable team, delivering work our clients love.

So, here’s to the next 20 years…