MSIF backs expanding design company

3rd July 2005

A LIVERPOOL design business is set to expand, thanks to funding from Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF).

Team a go-go, currently based in Bold Street, is a creative design consultancy offering services including contract interiors and furniture, as well as design based community engagement projects.

Their clients are typically public sector, or large corporates, recently including Marshall Moore, Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership, the Riverside Group, and Balfour Beatty with whom they are working on proposals to transform educational buildings throughout the UK.

Groundbreaking work has also been lined up as far afield as the Cayman Islands and Tasmania.

Established in 1997 by Creative Director Steve Threlfall, Kate Stewart joined the firm in 1999 and they now employ 7 people. They believe that a well-designed space can transform an organisation from merely functional to more productive and efficient - which improves customer and staff satisfaction as well as profitability.

Team a go-go have received a £42,000 funding package from MSIF, as well as a £60,000 business loan from HSBC, to enable them to expand – initially by exploring new business areas. They have also invested in systems and staff to support faster customer responses, meaning that it is now possible to install furniture in clients’ workspaces within 2 weeks of ordering.

The team have now been asked to develop design concepts for new schools in the Cayman Islands by world-leading education expert Professor Stephen Heppell. The New York-based architect Prakash Nair has also asked them to design the interiors and supply furniture to a new school campus in Tasmania.

The company hopes to move into larger premises, and almost double its turnover in the next three years.

Development Director Kate Stewart says: "We are delighted to be able to expand our business. We feel that Team a go-go offers a unique customer focused service, using talented and creative people. We are at a very exciting stage in our development and this funding from MSIF will help us take us to the next level."

Paul Humphray, Investment Manager of MSIF’s Small Firms Fund, said: "Team a go-go has shown that their combination of business sense and creativity is a winning formula. We are pleased to be supporting them."

Ends

For further information contact Angela White at Merseyside Special Investment Fund on 0151 236 4040

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From L to R - Steve Threlfall (Team a go-go), Kate Stewart (Team a go-go) and Paul Humphray (MSIF).

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