September proved a landmark month for Swansea digital marketing agency AD Marketing, which was named Workplace of the Year at the South Wales Business Awards before signing a lease on a new home at the city’s J-Shed just days later.
The double celebration follows another period of growth for the specialist SEO and PPC agency, which is expanding its team, taking on new clients and preparing for the next stage of its development from larger premises in SA1.
For founder and Managing Director Alix Charles, the timing could hardly have been better.
Alix Charles said:
“To win Workplace of the Year and then sign for our new office within days of each other made September a pretty special month for us.”
Established by Alix in 2018, AD Marketing has developed from a one-person operation into a growing digital agency specialising in SEO and paid search campaigns for businesses across Wales and throughout the UK.
Central to that growth has been a focus on developing people from within, giving employees genuine opportunities to progress and involving the team in decisions about how the company develops.
That approach was recognised when AD Marketing was named Workplace of the Year, an award Alix believes is as much about the people behind the business as the company itself.
Alix continued:
“We have always believed that if you invest in good people, give them opportunities and listen to them, they will grow with the business.
“What we have created here hasn’t come from copying somebody else’s idea of what a good workplace should look like. It has developed around our team, what motivates them and what helps them do their best work.”
The company’s next chapter will now be written from Unit 6 at J-Shed, one of the most distinctive buildings within Swansea’s regenerated waterfront.
Built in 1895 as a grain warehouse alongside the Prince of Wales Dock, the Grade II listed J-Shed is the sole surviving warehouse from the original series of dockside sheds and has since been transformed into a mix of commercial, office and leisure space.
Its location also places AD Marketing at the heart of an area that has developed into one of Swansea’s key business districts, with professional services firms, technology businesses, university facilities and established employers all based around the SA1 Waterfront.
Alix added:
“We wanted somewhere that reflected where AD Marketing is heading. J-Shed has so much history and character, but it also sits in an area full of businesses that are growing, innovating and investing in Swansea. Winning the award and securing J-Shed within the same week felt like two very clear signs that we are moving in the right direction.”
