Solid Ground
Solid Ground is a Manchester-based placemaking and property marketing agency that develops year-round event programs and activates public spaces for property developers and local councils seeking to drive growth at city centre destinations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersManchester, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Solid Ground does
Solid Ground is a Manchester-based placemaking and property marketing agency founded in 2016. The firm provides marketing, events programming, and commercialization services to property developers and local government authorities, with a focus on activating urban development destinations and city centre assets. Its core offering involves developing year-round event programs, activating public spaces, and running campaigns designed to drive footfall, support local businesses, and generate long-term economic growth at these destinations. The agency's work is delivered as human-led professional services rather than through any named technology platform or proprietary product; core technology is unspecified and no AI/ML capabilities are disclosed.
The business operates on a project- and contract-based professional services model, securing direct agency appointments from property developers and local councils. Its primary disclosed engagement is the December 2025 appointment by Legat Owen, on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester Council, to lead marketing, events, and commercialization at the Chester Northgate city centre destination. The firm is small, with 1-10 employees, and is co-led by founder and managing director Libby Rush and co-founder and operations director Colette Farrugia. No funding rounds, investor backing, subsidiaries, or M&A activity are disclosed in the available data. Operating scope is currently regional, with Cheshire (UK) as the principal served market beyond the Manchester headquarters.
Solid Ground firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Solid Ground
- Website
- https://thissolidground.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Solid Ground is a Manchester-based placemaking and property marketing agency that develops year-round event programs and activates public spaces for property developers and local councils seeking to drive growth at city centre destinations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Solid Ground industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Property Marketing and Placemaking Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Urban Renewal, Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reuse (BPAIANAI)
Keywords
Where Solid Ground is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Manchester
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
Solid Ground business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Marketing and Activation Services: Professional services revenue derived from providing marketing, events, and commercialization services to property developers and local councils. The agency develops year-round event programs and activates public spaces to promote long-term growth at city centre destinations.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels1 record
Solid Ground product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Solid Ground is a placemaking and property marketing agency that provides marketing, events, and commercialization services to property developers and local councils. The agency develops year-round event programs, activates public spaces, and promotes local businesses to drive long-term foot traffic and commercial growth at city centre destinations. Its work centres on appointed engagements for specific urban development sites such as the Chester Northgate city centre destination.
Product overview
Solid Ground is a property marketing and activation agency that provides marketing, events, and commercialization services. The company develops year-round event programs, activates public spaces, and supports local businesses to promote growth at city centre destinations. No specific named products, modules, or technology products are identified in the available source data.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Property Marketing and Activation Services
Companies that use Solid Ground
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Solid Ground technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Solid Ground partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Legat OwencoreSolid Ground was appointed by Legat Owen, a property marketing and development firm, on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester Council. The agency will lead marketing, events, and commercialization efforts at Chester Northgate, developing year-round event programs and activating public spaces to promote long-term growth at the city centre destination.
- Cheshire West and Chester CouncilcoreSolid Ground was appointed by Legat Owen on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester Council to lead marketing, events, and commercialization at Chester Northgate. The agency will develop a year-round program of events, activate public spaces, and boost local businesses to promote long-term growth at the city centre destination.
Recent moves2 records
Expansion highlights2 records
Solid Ground competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Carter Jonas: National UK property consultancy with established property marketing and development advisory capabilities. Comparable buyer profile (developers, councils) but a much broader service portfolio than Solid Ground.
- JLL: Global real estate services firm with marketing, advisory and placemaking capabilities for property developers and investors. Overlaps with Solid Ground in serving property developers, but is much larger and broader in scope.
- CBRE: World's largest commercial real estate services firm, with property marketing, advisory and place activation capabilities for developers and public-sector entities. Overlaps at the customer and capability level.
- Avison Young: Global commercial real estate advisory with placemaking and marketing-adjacent capabilities serving developers and public-sector clients worldwide. Significantly larger and broader than Solid Ground, but with overlapping destination-activation work.
- Knight Frank: Global property consultancy with UK property marketing and development advisory practices. Comparable in serving property developers and councils, though much broader than Solid Ground's niche placemaking focus.
Direct peers
- HemingwayDesign: UK-based placemaking, branding and design agency working on major property and destination projects. Comparable as a UK property-placemaking specialist serving developers and public-sector clients.
- Streetsense: US-based experiential and placemaking agency that combines marketing, brand activation, and placemaking for mixed-use developments, destinations, and cities. Closely comparable in offering and customer profile (property developers, public-sector) to Solid Ground.
- Future City: UK property marketing and branding consultancy that places destinations, developments, and places into market for property developers and councils. Direct competitor to Solid Ground's destination-marketing proposition.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Solid Ground social profiles
Digital presenceSolid Ground financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Solid Ground leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Solid Ground funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Solid Ground M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Solid Ground
What does Solid Ground do?
Solid Ground is a placemaking and property marketing agency that provides marketing, events, and commercialization services to property developers and local councils. The agency develops year-round event programs, activates public spaces, and promotes local businesses to drive long-term foot traffic and commercial growth at city centre destinations. Its work centres on appointed engagements for specific urban development sites such as the Chester Northgate city centre destination.
Is Solid Ground a public or private company?
Solid Ground is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Solid Ground founded?
Solid Ground was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Solid Ground based?
Solid Ground is headquartered in Manchester, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Solid Ground make money?
One revenue line is on record: marketing and Activation Services.
Who are Solid Ground's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Carter Jonas, JLL, CBRE, Avison Young and Knight Frank. Direct peers are HemingwayDesign, Streetsense and Future City.
Does Solid Ground have an API?
No public API is recorded for Solid Ground.
What industry is Solid Ground in?
Solid Ground's product category is Property Marketing and Placemaking Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIANAI, Urban Renewal, Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reuse.