You will have read about THG, you will have bought THG brands’ products and you will have almost certainly heard about THG’s candid boss Matt Moulding, but until you pay an actual visit to THG’s sprawling 16.8-acre campus next door to Manchester Airport, you are probably still unaware just what a gigantic operation this company now is.
ICON Business Park, the global headquarters of £2 billion-revenue THG, is breathtaking in its scale and obvious ambition.
And at the heart of the 1 million sq ft campus sits THG Studios, which at 160,000 sq ft makes it one of the biggest creative studios in Europe (it has additional facilities in Warrington, Macclesfield, London, Leeds and Portugal).
For almost 17 years, THG Studios has been the creative powerhouse behind the prodigious growth of THG’s own brands, including Myprotein, ESPA and LOOKFANTASTIC.
But just as he had done with THG’s Ingenuity platform, Moulding saw an opportunity to “turn a cost centre into a profit centre”, says Jo Jeffers, THG Studios’ Head of Strategy.
So instead of just working on its own brands, THG began to offer its creative expertise to brands globally.
Helped by its 2017 acquisition of Macclesfield’s 200-strong agency Hangar Seven, THG Studios quickly established itself as a significant player in agency land.
The result is the hybrid operation it is today: all creative for THG’s growing portfolio of brands is ideated and brought to life within these walls, but the team of 350 strategists, creatives, animators, producers, stylists, videographers, photographers and editors also produce award-winning work for the likes of Disney, Asda, Matalan, DFS, Homebase and Sky Bet.
From nowhere, THG Studios is now the fifth largest integrated agency in the North, according to Prolific North’s latest Top 50.
Sky-high ambition
Walking around the vast creative spaces that make up the studios, you get the sense that this is a facility with ambition as sky-high as its ceiling.
“Our setup allows us to handle everything from high-end TV commercials to rapid content creation,” Jeffers said. “We’ve even got a commercial-grade kitchen and two large interior studios for clients in the food and interiors industries.”
Given its proximity to both Manchester Airport and the ‘footballer belt’ of Altrincham and Hale, high-profile visitors are a common sight in the studios.
This is largely because Gary Neville’s hugely popular podcast The Overlap is filmed within one of the studios here, meaning that Roy Keane, Ian Wright and – occasionally – David Beckham are spotted here.
In a separate studio, Cristiano Ronaldo once made a flying visit to be photographed by Annie Leibowitz for an internet-breaking chess picture with Lionel Messi for a Louis Vuitton campaign (for the record, the pair were never actually in the room together).
Rebranding Disney Store and Myprotein
A particular highlight of 2024 has been THG Studios’ TV advertising campaign work with Disney Store.
“It was a huge moment for us as a business because it was probably the first truly global work we have done. Disney putting their trust in us was massive for us as a creative team.”
Another major recent project has been the rolling out of the global rebrand of Myprotein, a “hugely complex and time-consuming” job according to Jeffers.
The main purpose of the rebrand, Jeffers says, was to reposition Myprotein from a “spit and sawdust” traditional gym-goers’ brand to a more holistic and inclusive brand.
“It’s gone from having an almost scientific aesthetic into a much more welcoming wellness brand,” she added.
“It now speaks to a much bigger market than the traditional gym goer, while not forgetting who the original customer is.”
The 18-month process involved a huge amount of engagement with customers.
“If you don’t speak to your customers, ambassadors and influencers – people who use the product – you’re more than likely going to get it wrong. We’ve had to adjust the approach as we’ve gone through when we’ve had feedback.”
A culture of internal development
The studio places a strong emphasis on recruitment and staff development, actively bringing in apprentices and providing clear pathways for career progression.
“Many of our team started in junior roles and have risen to senior positions. We are passionate about growing and rewarding talent,” says Jeffers, who joined in 2019 and has risen to be a part of the Senior Leadership Team for the business.
“We’re all about providing opportunities for growth, both for our existing staff and new talent entering the industry.”
The studio’s culture of learning and progression extends beyond internal development, with partnerships with local universities and schools aimed at creating a pipeline of fresh talent.
There are clearly no limitations on growth, regardless of where you are in the business, with a barista in the on-site coffee shop having recently been promoted to Studio Assistant after demonstrating his photography expertise.
‘Dior is still going to be shooting in Paris’
The rise of AI has led to debates about the balance between technology and human creativity, and while acknowledging this challenge, Jeffers believes that AI can coexist with traditional creative processes.
“AI is great for handling lower-level tasks and freeing up our creative minds to focus on the big ideas and help bring them to life,” she says.
“But Dior is still going to be shooting in Paris, and the higher-end advertising work is still going to be there as creativity and ideas are still key.”
She added: “AI will become a more and more important part of the creative process in the coming years, but ultimately it is a tool. You can’t replace the creative process, genuine insight or the ability to bring human emotion in to solve a creative problem.”
THG mentality
There’s evidently a clear sense of direction at THG Studios, helped by what Jeffers calls the THG “mentality”.
“We’re very proactive at chasing growth and I think that comes from THG. Whatever department you work within here, the mentality is the same: constantly striving for more and bigger, seeing obstacles as challenges that can be overcome.”
Alongside continued commercial growth and recognition as a top creative agency, THG Studios plans to explore new areas like original content, leveraging its expertise in social and YouTube to create new revenue streams.
For Jeffers, as she surveys the expansive studios all around her, the potential is limitless.
“We want to be recognised for our creativity and our ability to deliver on projects,” she said “We have the talent and the facilities. A part of this is winning more of the bigger creative advertising accounts, winning awards, and being seen alongside the heavyweights in the industry.”
