Healthcare sector helps creative agency Leith enjoy revenue boost

Leith, which says it is Scotland’s largest creative agency, has cheered a jump in turnover in 2021, with the “record” year boosted by a string of clients wins by its healthcare and digital divisions.

Edinburgh-based Leith said that in the period ending December 31, revenue increased to £11.5 million from £9.8m, with headcount growing to 131 – and this is expected to exceed 140 by the end of the year.

The agency, which says it provides advertising and design, digital services, brand experiences, and insights and intelligence, stated that during the year an international vaccine awareness campaign for the Geneva-based International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations was one of its main assignments.

From left: Leith executives Richard Marsham, Vic Milne, and Brian Coane. Picture: Stewart Attwood.

Leith also added the National Lottery, Worldwide Cancer Research, Scottish Salmon Company, Skills Development Scotland, and L’Oreal to its client roster, joining the likes of IRN-BRU, NatWest/Royal Bank of Scotland, Network Rail, Edrington Group, Nando’s, the Scottish Government, and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

The moves comes after Leith at the beginning of 2020 merged with digital marketing specialist Signal, a fellow Cello agency, with 2021 marking the first full year of trading since the merger.

Leith group managing partner Richard Marsham said: “2021 was a record year for the agency, in spite of it being a challenging year on so many fronts. Our mantra is around what we describe as ‘bold ideas that make a difference’, an approach that has helped us to secure new business across the UK and increasingly on the international front.

"Our digital services division has gone from strength to strength, working with clients like Nando’s and NatWest on big-ticket assignments,” he said, also pointing to the firm’s capabilities in the healthcare sector, including in pharmaceuticals “and increasingly in areas like mental health and wellbeing”.

Leith said that senior hires and promotions during 2021 included the appointment of Vic Milne as head of strategy, replacing David Amers who had held the role for 26 years. Ms Milne, who heads up a multi-disciplined team of 16 people, also now sits on Leith’s board, said the firm, which was founded in 1984, and acquired by global healthcare and consumer strategic marketing company Cello Group in 2004.

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