Young entrepreneur expands business

A young entrepreneur has expanded his marketing business, doubled its turnover and opened a new co-working space in Shropshire since launching.

Sam Deakin  (24) founded Ironbridge-based marketing agency Dash in 2023 after leaving a previous business he had created with a former business partner.

Less than three years on, Dash has grown from a one-person business into a group of three companies, a team of four and is working with national clients across the UK.

The business, which specialises in providing strategic and digital marketing support to SMEs at affordable prices, has doubled its turnover in the last three years and is expected to achieve its highest turnover to date this financial year.

As part of the company's expansion, Dash moved into larger premises in the John Rose Building and earlier this year launched Dash Spaces, a co-working and meeting space there, designed to support freelancers, remote workers, and small business owners in Shropshire.

The facility offers affordable hot-desking and meeting room access, helping to create a real business community in the heart of Ironbridge.

Alongside its agency services, the company has also begun developing its own software platforms, including project management and social media scheduling tools designed to reduce costs for both the agency and its clients.

Sam, who started his first web design company at the age of sixteen while studying for his A-levels, said the business had been built entirely through organic growth and client recommendations to others.

"When I launched Dash, I wanted to create an agency that gave smaller businesses access to the same strategic marketing thinking that larger organisations receive. Many business owners know they need help with their marketing but worry they can’t afford strategic support. We've worked hard to change that thinking and make high quality marketing more accessible.

"The fact that we've been able to grow so quickly by word of mouth and clients recommending us to other companies is something I'm incredibly proud of.

"We're always looking at ways to become more efficient and deliver better value for money for our clients. Rather than passing rising costs onto them, we've invested in developing our own technology and systems. It’s that innovation and our relationship with our clients that will drive our future growth."