The Ingenuity Group, parent of The Future Factory, which it acquired its “largest competitor” in 2023 to create a lead generation and business agency with a combined workforce of 160 employees and offices in London, Manchester and Leeds, has responded to yesterday’s news of the redundancy of Future Factory North MD John Schumacher (pictured).
Chris Kemp, CEO of The Ingenuity Group, assured Prolific North that the move, which Schumacher described as a “‘commercial’ decision,” was not indicative of any change in the group’s commitment to its operations in the North. Its Northern operation now also includes a Future Factory Glasgow office, set up during Schumacher’s Northern tenure.
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Kemp said: “The Ingenuity Group continues to invest heavily in the north, as demonstrated by the launch of Mad//Up North later this month. We remain committed to growing our wonderful Future Factory teams in Manchester and Glasgow and wish John all the best in his next venture.
Schumacher had made his new-found freedom public on LinkedIn yesterday, with his redundancy coming after 10 years at the company.
He spent five years in London with the Future Factory, which works alongside agencies on business development to identify potential new opportunities, before heading up North to open its Manchester office in 2019. He has since grown the Manchester team from three at launch to 24 in late 2024 (and 25 in his departing message), as well as taking the lead on opening The Future Factory’s Glasgow office.
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Schumacher, who served as a judge at the Prolific North Marketing Awards for 2024, told his followers on LinkedIn:
“What did you get for your 10 year work anniversary?
A gold watch?
Golf Clubs?
An afternoon at the Hilton for a grease down and a shi-atsu?
Well for me…it began with ‘R’ and ended in ‘edundancy’! (Having now left my sad and angry stage, I can laugh about the irony of this ‘commercial’ decision now).
For those who don’t know my story; I moved to Manchester on my own with no idea whether I could make this work and after years of sweat and toil, I’m leaving having opened 2 northern offices, 25 fantastic team members and an office culture that is second to none (which I hope won’t be compromised).
For me, the future is already shaping up to be an exciting one and I can’t wait to share details of my next venture.
For the team left behind, I am proud of you all and only hope that the torch is carried uncompromised to continue what I set out to do; fantastic people who care about service to clients and do so with honesty and integrity – all whilst having fun!
Agencies of the North, let’s grab a brew soon (no holds barred)
Future Factory… it’s been an incredible decade!”
