Brave Bison, the digital media, marketing, and technology company which acquired Manchester’s Social Chain last year, has revealed record net revenue growth of 23% year-on-year in its audited results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2023.
Despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop, Brave Bison has bucked the industry trend increasing its net revenue to £20.9m and its headcount to 251 (from 162 in 2022). The audited results appear to largely cancel out an initial financial and staffing downward trend which saw BraveBison lay off over a quarter of staff at the storied Manchester agency in the months following SocialChain’s acquisition in February 2023. Sales for the period stood at £35.7m, compared to £31.65m a year ago, while net income was £3.39m, up more than 50% from £2.08m a year ago, although just shy of the £3.6m projected in the firm’s January update.
This third consecutive year of strong growth since brothers Oliver and Theo Green took the helm in 2020, has been largely driven by record levels of new business. High-profile brands including ProCook, Molson Coors, Purina, Seasalt and Monday.com have joined an already burgeoning portfolio of enviable clients.
2023 also saw the strategic acquisition of leading social and influencer agency, SocialChain, followed by its rebrand and relaunch in September. SocialChain’s creator-led model, which focuses on putting talent – from within and outside the agency – creativity, insight and outcomes at the heart of content output, attracted new client wins from household names such as LinkedIn, Holland & Barrett, John Lewis Partnership and The Army.
Brave Bison also recently launched Scribe, a generative AI tool content tool that leverages GPT-3 to produce brand-safe SEO content. This has, so far, driven triple-digit increases in ROI for some of Brave Bison’s biggest clients.
Oliver Green, chairman, said: “2023 was another strong year for Brave Bison. We are pleased to report an increase in net revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA per share for the third consecutive year.
The acquisition of SocialChain has transformed our proposition to advertisers looking to connect with younger and more niche audiences on emerging platforms. We are now working with a roster of blue chip global brands across the business and are able to connect the dots for clients across the holy trinity of media, technology and content.”
Green added that Q1 2024 trading has been ahead of last year, and that the board remains confident of meeting market expectations of £21m revenue for FY24.
