Premium designer menswear brand Blake Mill has appointed Vega to drive its ambitious expansion plans in the UK and internationally across paid search and growth marketing.
Based in Manchester, Blake Mill blends original artistic design with luxurious fabrics and meticulous craftsmanship to create its range of unique shirts and tops. The collaborative product development process combines artwork from a growing community of local and regional artists with input from their customer and follower base.
Having established a highly scalable production and distribution capability as well as a strong customer base in the UK, the online brand has begun delivering on its plan to triple sales in the next 12 months. While the majority of growth will be driven by new customer acquisition in the UK, it is expected that over 10% of sales will come from consumers in the United States and continental Europe.
The growth plans are to be fuelled by a £1.5m Series A funding round closing in April, supported primarily by the brand’s customers who have so far made investments from £1,000 to £500,000. Blake Mill’s longer-term ambitions are to build a global, premium fashion brand from their Manchester headquarters, selling garments with eye-catching designs to a wide range of international customers through an optimised mix of online, wholesale and their own art-inspired stores.
Following a competitive pitch, Vega has been appointed to lead on an integrated programme of paid search, shopping, brand awareness and tactical activation across all media channels.
Blake Mill CEO and co-founder Ken Price said: “After an intensive search, Vega emerged as by far the best partner to help us achieve our growth plans. Manchester was at the heart of the industrial revolution driven largely by textile production and is today an international hub for fashion, technology, and innovation. We are delighted to partner with a Manchester-based agency that shares our ambition to spearhead Blake Mill’s global expansion.”
Vega co-founder Alexia Harper added: “Blake Mill appealed to our core values straight away, a hungry for growth Manchester start up with all right building blocks for success. Vega’s collaborative approach of being part of a client’s boardroom and allowing us to fully integrate into their business meant we quickly found a great fit together.
“The growth journey of Blake Mill to date is really impressive, and with fantastic products, an engaged community, their passioned and clear objectives as a brand, we’re confident that with our skillset and track record of growing businesses we can help realise their ambitions.’’
Vega joins a network of select media professionals and agencies including TASK PR to help establish Blake Mill as a purveyor of high-quality men’s shirts.
