North East media agency makes four new hires

Newcastle based media agency, Route, founded by Gateshead born Darren Davidson and his business partner Ben Dascombe, has made four new appointments. 

The media-buying specialists have won a series of national clients accounts in the built environment, automotive and eCommerce sectors over the past year. Clients include First Bus, Group 1 Autos, Vines, Berry’s, Snows, Sovereign Centros, Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), Dutchview, Premier Kitchens, Welsh Oak Frame, Cleva, Knitwear Queen and Cream Cornwall.

As a result, Route has strengthened the team with four appointments reflecting its commitment to investing in specialist expertise and fresh talent. Martyn King, SEO Account Director and Sarah Thomas, Paid Social Media Manager will support Route’s vision to partner with clients to help them understand their customer touchpoints and maximise their investments. 

Molly-Ann Hughes, Account Executive and Lewis Wallwork, Data Apprentice, will support clients and the company as demand for services increases across its three key sectors. The new hires and increased growth has led to Route doubling its office space at  Newcastle’s Generator Studios within the last 12-months.

After relocating to his native North East after 20 years working in advertising for News UK, Sky and latterly as Programmatic and Digital Trading Director at Time Inc. UK, Darren opened Route’s doors in Newcastle six years ago. Route offers SMEs, communications agencies and in-house marketing teams a modern alternative to traditional media buying agencies, focusing on customer engagement, growth and retention.

Darren said: “We’re delighted to welcome Martyn, Sarah, Molly-Ann and Lewis to our growing team. It is important that we invest in the right mix of skills and new talent to continue to deliver our multi-channel award-winning work. 

“SEO underpins a significant part of our client and campaign work. That’s why as we experience growth in the built environment, automotive and eCommerce sectors it is vital for us to invest in specialist expertise. While Sarah is helping us to expand our social media capabilities which are in high demand across the board. 

“I’m personally proud to be able to bring onboard new local talent. Both Molly-Ann and Lewis’ enthusiasm is infectious and it’s brilliant to give them the opportunity to learn from the team, as well as myself and Ben, and work on a diverse range of exciting accounts.”

Co-Director Ben Dascombe, continues: “Route has grown year on year for the past 6-years and we’re always looking for how to continually succeed and improve. Getting the right mix of skills, experience in place for the team is a vital part of our progression. 

“Getting the right people is only part of the picture. We’re continually looking at how best to look after our staff. We’ve always had a family-first, flexible working approach but over the past year have implemented a mentoring programme and welcomed industry guest speakers to support the team’s development.”

Martyn King, Routes most senior appointment, served in the Royal Irish Regiment for 5-years before entering the digital space. He worked his way up from sales to managing PPC and SEO accounts acquiring a wealth of national expertise. 

He said: “It’s great to join the team at Route and use my SEO expertise to not only support a range of exciting clients and campaigns but also help develop the agency’s young talent. SEO is my passion. I help clients to continually improve their website rankings and they can see the results in real-time. You can’t underestimate the power of SEO and its growing importance. 

“One thing that has really helped me personally since joining Route is the agency’s family first, hybrid working approach. As a father of three children under 10 it means a lot to my family to have that flexibility and support from Ben and Darren who are both father’s themselves.”

Route offers clients access to the most advanced marketing technology solutions in the North East. For more information, visit www.route.agency