Ten years. It’s a strange sentence to write.
In 2015, I was fresh out of college, building websites for anyone who’d trust me with a login. No business plan. No strategy. Just a slightly dodgy brand name (Beyond Creative Co.) and a lot of late nights figuring things out as I went.
I didn’t set out to build an agency. I just knew I loved designing things that worked – and I wanted to help people do more with what they had. Small businesses, start-ups, people taking a risk. That’s where it started.
Those first few years were scrappy, but they were formative. I learned how to build relationships. I learned how to problem-solve under pressure. I learned that charging £150 for a full site build probably wasn’t sustainable.
Things changed in 2021. I left my corporate job, backed myself, and decided to take Beyond Co. full-time. That was a big leap, and not without its risks – but it was the right one. We brought in our first few hires, tightened up how we worked, and started to feel more like a proper company.
By the end of the year, we were growing fast. We registered the company officially. Got VAT registered (joy). Took on bigger projects. Began building the culture that underpins everything we do now. It stopped being just about me, and started being about a team.
2023 was another shift. New clients. New awards. New studio. The launch of BeyondAcademy and BeyondTogether – projects that meant a lot to us, because they reflected the kind of business we want to be.
And now here we are. Ten years in. A team of twelve. A new brand, a proper digital home, and a sense that this is only just getting started.
I’ve learned more than I ever expected from this journey. There’s been plenty of trial and error – probably more error than I’d care to admit. But I’ve also had the privilege of working with incredible people, both inside and outside this business, and I’ll never take that for granted.
To everyone who’s trusted us with your brand, your website, your story, thank you.
To everyone who’s worked for us, built this with us, and cared as much as we do – we’ll never forget it.
Here’s to whatever comes next. Cheers!
Contact:
Jake Lines
Managing Director
Beyond Co.
0333 224 0022