Revenues soar 300% at growing Orange Bus

Dec 11 2008 by Iain Laing, The Journal

FRENCH films, surging tea-bag sales and a London music venue which has played host to the likes of Madonna and Coldplay have led a North East digital firm to a crunch-beating 300% climb in annual revenue.

On the back of deals with a number of corporate heavyweights in London, Newcastle’s Orange Bus is also considering opening up a sales office in the capital in the new year.

To facilitate rapid growth at the firm, it has moved from its 380 sq ft Jesmond loft premises into its new 1,500 sq ft office in the Grade II listed windmill building on Claremont Road, Newcastle.

And, after overcoming stiff competition to win a web design contract with London’s 108-year-old music venue KOKO earlier this year, it has also landed a deal with broadcaster Sky.

Orange Bus will work on a website for a new French movie channel Sky is preparing to launch next year and, further down the line, will also work on its video-on-demand offering.

Meanwhile, the company has helped one of the region’s oldest brands cash in on the internet retail boom by boosting its web presence. Last May the firm won a web-design contract with century-old tea business Ringtons and helped the group to a 400% rise in sales generated through the internet in the first month alone.

Director and co-founder, Julian Leighton believes Orange Bus has been lifted this year by tough economic conditions which have forced more companies into looking at ways of staying ahead of their rivals.

He said: “A lot of businesses are intelligently capitalising on the fact that many of their competitors are hiding away – which is exactly the time to market harder and create a strong online presence.

“We challenge clients to uncover what they actually need as opposed to what they think they want – this has resulted in a direct increase in sales for some already.”

He also said the growth of Orange Bus is indicative of a North East digital sector which can now challenge more established businesses in London.

“For too long the North East’s web design industry has been in the shadow of the South – we have a pool of hugely talented creative minds in this region and we are starting to see the rewards.”

Herb Kim, CEO of Codeworks – the centre for digital innovation in the North East – believes the success of Orange Bus is an example of the wealth of talent in the region’s digital industry, which needs to be nurtured for the ongoing future growth of the sector.

He said: “Orange Bus is a great example of how the digital sector has matured in the North East.

“Over the past five or six years, the region’s digital sector has been one of the fastest growing in the UK, and now we’re home to a cluster of mature, world-class digital companies. This isn’t hyperbole. Two of the world’s biggest games publishers can be found within a few miles of the Angel of the North.

“Digital agencies such as Orange Bus are winning blue chip clients and producing creative, effective work. And now, through the Digital City and Software City initiatives, we continue to build on these strengths.

“Although a few people bizarrely still see the North as somehow behind the times, the good news is that more and more companies are waking up to the fact that digital agencies in the region can deliver a return on investment that few elsewhere can match.”