World leading firm reaches 100 employee milestone in meteoritic success story -

By Jill Dando News

A unique visionary marketing, media and technology business has attained a major milestone – reaching 100 employees for the first time.

“It’s taken 19 years of hard work, but my vision has always been unshakeable – to build a world-class marketing, media and technology company in North Somerset.
Andrew Scott, CEO, The Ascot Group

The Ascot Group has become a world leading company in only a few short years, based in a state-of-the-art HQ in Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, UK.

The Ascot Group, based at Worle Park Way Business Park, was established in 2004 by Irish entrepreneur Andrew Scott and it took on its first employee in 2007.

It’s a special landmark for any business in the UK, as only 20,000 firms (0.3%) of the UK’s 5.5 million businesses ever reach 100 employees¹.

The investment in people follows 20% year-on-year growth at the Ascot Group.

Andrew Scott, founder and CEO of the Ascot Group, said: “I didn’t start with a team of people, a great product or investment.

“In fact, I started the business as a one-man-band from my dining room table, living on credit cards for two years and driving around the country in an ancient car with 250,000 miles on the clock, putting in 80 – 100 hour weeks as a consultant, marketer, writer, designer, developer and everything else.

“It’s taken 19 years of hard work, but my vision has always been unshakeable – to build a world-class marketing, media and technology company in North Somerset.”

Andrew added: “Ultimately a business is only as good as its people. We’re blessed in North Somerset to have some immensely talented people who don’t want the big commute to Bristol, Bath or London, and the Ascot Group provides an ideal home to nurture talent and develop careers – including our recent Digital Marketing Apprenticeship programme.

“It’s also about giving back, which is why we actively support Somewhere to Go, a local homeless charity, and Gympanzees, which supports children with learning difficulties and disability.

“I won’t pretend the last 19 years has been easy – it hasn’t. Building any business is tough, building multiple companies simultaneously is a different level.

“I’m extremely proud of what we’ve built, the impact we’ve had on the local community and economy, and the team around me. I’m excited to see the next stage of our evolutionary journey and continue building my fabulous team.”

Founded in 2004 by Andrew Scott, the Ascot Group is a fast-track high growth company made of nine businesses including the UK’s leading business magazine Business Leader, full-service marketing agency Purplex, renowned data specialists Insight Data, private investment firm Knightstone Capital and almost a dozen investee companies across a diverse range of industries.

The Ascot Group is located just a mile away from Jill Dando’s childhood home, and even closer to the schools where Jill Dando News was founded, Worle Community School Academy and Priory Community School Academy.

Jill Dando News exists to find and ‘post’ good news out to the world with hundreds of children now training in ‘the Jill Dando way’ in journalism.

The Ascot Group are passionately helping people. Both Andrew Scott and Oli Ballard of the Ascot Group were at the launch of Jill Dando News at Priory along with Nigel Dando and Jeffrey Archer (pictured below).