What’s in a name?

Tucked away in a corner of Paintworks lies a business that blazed a digital trail long before Bristol was recognised as a tech hub.

E3, set up more than 20 years ago by a pair of entrepreneurs in their final year of university, has managed to stay ahead in an increasingly competitive field – and its recent merger with London agency LSU marks the next transition.

The two have combined to form Great State, a new agency that works to “help brands stay relevant in a connected world”.

“There should be a positivity around technology,” says managing director Neil Collard. “It’s seen as a threat to most people, but there is a thought that technology can be used to help people.”

Settled in a comfortable chair within the modest, glass-walled boardroom in the heart of Bristol’s creative business quarter, the boss of the newly-merged company is confident of its ability to deliver cutting-edge solutions to meet evolving business needs.

“The essence is that digital is disrupting everything and this is a real problem for businesses – many of which do not stay around for as long as they used to.

“People’s buying habits are changing and services are not just judged against others in their own sectors.

“This is the change that people are facing, but businesses are not used to changing and growing and evolving quickly.”

The Great State team in the Paintworks office

E3 was set up by co-founders Stuart Avery and Mike Bennett, and the company’s expertise lay in building websites, software development, marketing and design, while LSU was all about brands and helping clients understand their customers’ needs.

The new company has more than 80 members of staff and is hoping to shake up the market with a fresh approach.

“We are agile and can do things quickly,” continues Neil.

“We sell thinking and understanding where your customers come from. We do not recommend stuff that just happens to be what we make, we recommend stuff that the customer needs.”

Neil started in the digital sector in 1998 and worked in London before joining E3 12 years ago. He was made MD six years later.

He says that Bristol has grown in terms of digital in recent years.

In fact it is a celebration of the positive power of technology that inspired the name Great State

“There is something bigger and better out there that technology can deliver,” explains Neil. “It almost feels like it’s within our grasp now and the term refers to the way that technology can help us achieve that.

“We will help clients look at tech in a positive and optimistic way. Frankly, looking at Brexit and Trump, we could do with some optimism in the world.”

It may be a modest company, but with a client base that includes the likes of Honda, Anchor and Arthritis Research UK, and plans to expand by around 10 to 20 per cent per year, Great State is certainly thinking big.

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