Swarm

What Swarm does

Swarm Limited is a UK-based, founder-owned brand experience agency founded in 2009 by Tim Manning and Ray Harris, headquartered in Redhill, Surrey. The company designs, engineers, and installs bespoke physical/digital experiential installations for global enterprise clients across retail, events, marketing, and leisure sectors, including Budweiser, Ford, Burberry, Telefonica/O2, Foot Locker, and Condé Nast's Allure Store. Its technology stack combines custom hardware fabrication (extreme-environment installations, LED ribbons, gesture-controlled systems, IoT voice activations) with proprietary software UX and multi-language web platforms capable of handling high-traffic campaign surges.

The company's flagship product line is Folio Mirror — an interactive smart mirror range with variants spanning retail selfie capture (Folio Selfie), beauty tutorial recording (Folio Tutorial), salon styling (Folio Hair), gym/leisure portal (Folio Fitness), and customer loyalty (Folio Loyalty) — operated as a sister company and deployed across 500+ Foot Locker stores globally with three-continent reach and KC Mark certification for South Korea. Swarm operates a project-focused agile model, assembling hybrid delivery teams from a global freelance roster rather than maintaining a large permanent workforce, which keeps fixed cost low while scaling delivery for bespoke engagements.

Revenue is generated through three streams: bespoke project-based professional services fees (multi-year contracts, quote-based pricing), Folio Mirror hardware sales and installation, and licensing/royalty income from certified international deployments. The company is privately held, has not raised external funding rounds, and has remained in the 11–50 employee band over a 12-year operational history, reflecting disciplined bootstrap scaling.

Name

Swarm

Legal name

Swarm Limited

Website

https://swarm.group

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Swarm is a UK-based, founder-owned brand experience agency that designs, engineers, and installs bespoke physical/digital experiential installations and Folio Mirror smart mirrors for global enterprise brands across retail, events, and marketing sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Experiential Brand Experience & Interactive Retail Technology

NAICS

Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing (33411)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Brand Activations & Experiential Campaign Design (MPAAAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Activation/Experiential Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAO), Environmental & Experiential Brand Design (Retail/Exhibit/Signage) (MPAAAEAG), Alternative OOH & Ambient Media (Guerrilla, Pop-Up Installations) (BPAFALAI)

Keywords

• Brand experience design
• Experiential marketing
• Interactive retail installations
• Smart mirror technology
• Physical digital activations

Headquarters

HQ city

Redhill

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Experiential Brand Experience Projects: Project-based fees for designing, building, and installing physical/digital brand experience installations for events, retail, and marketing activations. Projects include bespoke engineering solutions, software development, and production. Revenue is earned per engagement with no recurring component.
2. Folio Mirror Product Sales: Sale and deployment of Folio Mirror smart mirror hardware products to retail, beauty, and leisure brands. Products include Folio Selfie, Folio Tutorial, Folio Loyalty, Folio Fitness, and Folio Hair. Deployment spans Foot Locker globally and the Allure Store in New York.
3. Product Licensing & Certification: Folio Mirror products are licensed for deployment in international markets following regulatory certification (e.g., KC Mark for South Korea), enabling royalty-based or licensing revenue from franchise and chain deployments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Swarm produces extraordinary projects for brands, engaging customers across physical and digital installations. The agency designs, engineers, builds and deploys bespoke experiential activations for retail, events, marketing/PR, and leisure/entertainment clients, combining custom hardware fabrication with proprietary software, IoT and web platform development. Alongside bespoke projects, Swarm sells the Folio Mirror line of interactive smart mirrors (Selfie, Tutorial, Fitness, Loyalty, Hair) to retail and beauty chains worldwide.

Product overview

Swarm is a brand experience agency that develops products and services across experiential marketing, physical/digital installations, and interactive retail technology. The company's core product portfolio centers on the Folio Mirror line—interactive smart mirrors that blend digital and physical retail experiences. The Folio Mirror family includes multiple specialized variants: Folio Selfie (retail customer engagement and photo capture), Folio Tutorial (beauty tutorial recording), Folio Fitness (gym/leisure center portal), Folio Loyalty (customer retention), and Folio Hair (salon styling sessions with 360-degree video). The company also offers bespoke brand experience services for retail, events, marketing/PR, and leisure/entertainment sectors, creating physical/digital installations for clients including Budweiser, Ford, Burberry, and Footlocker.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Folio Mirror: Interactive mirrors that blend the digital and physical worlds, powered by cutting edge sensory technology. The range includes Folio Fitness, Folio Selfie, Folio Tutorial, Folio Loyalty, and Folio Hair.

Products and services

• Folio Mirror Interactive smart mirror platform that blends the digital and physical worlds, powered by cutting-edge sensory technology. The core product range on which the Folio Selfie, Folio Tutorial, Folio Loyalty, Folio Fitness and Folio Hair variants are built. KC Mark certified for deployment in South Korea.
• Brand Experience Agency Services Bespoke design, engineering, software and production of physical/digital brand experience installations for enterprise brand clients. Delivered across four service areas: Retail (connected in-store experiences and digital signage), Events (World Expos, exhibitions, festival activations), Marketing & PR (experiential devices for pop-up launches, touring campaigns and permanent installations), and Leisure & Entertainment (engineering solutions and innovative software for brand environments). Projects are delivered by hybrid project teams assembled from a freelancer roster and include hardware fabrication, software development, IoT integration and bespoke web platforms.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500 cars sold in the first 29 seconds; 9,200 applicants over 90 minutes; 2 million site visits — Ford Mustang UK digital launch
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Condé Nast / AllurecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 July 2021Swarm's sister company Folio Mirror was selected as the interactive smart mirror technology provider for the Allure Store — Condé Nast's first physical retail space on Lafayette Street, New York City. Markus Grindel, managing director of global brand licensing at Condé Nast, publicly commented on the partnership, highlighting Swarm's understanding that technology must serve the customer experience. This is a flagship reference for the Folio Mirror product line.
• Foot LockercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Folio Mirror's Selfie mirrors are deployed throughout Foot Locker stores globally as part of a major retail technology rollout. The partnership achieved KC Mark certification enabling expansion into the South Korean market. Represents one of Folio Mirror's largest enterprise deployments with over 500 stores globally.
• Shelton Fleming AssociatesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwarm collaborated with strategic creative events agency Shelton Fleming Associates to realise a digital interpretation of Ninety One's physical stand for FundForum International in Monte Carlo. Swarm delivered the technology and interactive elements (QR-enabled pledge cards, digital twin of the pledge tree, selfie functionality) while Shelton Fleming handled the physical stand design and creative strategy.
• Folio MirrorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFolio Mirror is Swarm's sister company and the product brand behind the Folio Mirror smart mirror product range. Swarm develops the strategy, ideas, and tools for brand experiences while Folio Mirror is the boxed product (Folio Selfie, Tutorial, Loyalty, Fitness, Hair) that can be adapted across multiple sectors. The two companies operate in close coordination, sharing engineering and software capabilities.
• US-based Freelance Installers (Nancy and Pete)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerUS-based freelancers commissioned the installation of Folio Mirrors at the Allure Store in New York while UK travel restrictions prevented the Swarm team from attending in person. Illustrates Swarm's use of a distributed freelance network for international project delivery.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• UNIT9: Independent creative technology studio producing interactive installations, branded experiences, and product design. Closely comparable to Swarm in combining bespoke experiential builds with proprietary interactive hardware/software capabilities for global brands.
• MKG: Independent, tech-forward experiential marketing agency known for blending brand storytelling with proprietary interactive technology. Comparable to Swarm in its hybrid creative-tech delivery and emphasis on measurable outcomes for enterprise clients.
• B-Reel: Sweden-founded global creative tech agency producing interactive installations, branded experiences, and bespoke digital products. Comparable to Swarm's hybrid hardware-software engineering focus and emphasis on high-profile enterprise clients.
• Tool of North America: Los Angeles-based creative production company specializing in commercials, experiential content, and brand activations for global brands. Direct peer to Swarm in delivering integrated creative-tech brand experience projects.
• Sparks: Philadelphia-headquartered global brand experience agency designing permanent exhibits, events, and digital activations for clients such as Google, Samsung, and Heineken. Direct competitor in delivering technology-enabled experiential campaigns for enterprise brands.
• Amplify: UK-based brand activation and experiential marketing agency with a similar independent, founder-led profile and emphasis on technology-led experiences for major advertisers. London/UK peer comparison for Swarm's bespoke activation model.

Broad incumbents

• Jack Morton Worldwide: One of the largest global brand experience agencies, delivering live events, exhibits, and digital-physical activations for major brands like Ford, Google, and Coca-Cola. Directly comparable to Swarm's bespoke brand activation model but at vastly larger scale and geographic reach.
• George P. Johnson Experience Marketing: Long-established global experience marketing agency operating across events, exhibits, and digital activations. Comparable in its custom brand-experience builds for Fortune 500 clients across industries including automotive, tech, and consumer goods.
• Imagination Group: London-headquartered brand experience agency famous for Ford, BBC, and Nike experiences combining physical installations, content, and digital. Shares Swarm's UK base, blue-chip client roster, and integration of physical design with technology.

Regional players

• Hot Coffee: UK-led creative and brand-experience agency delivering campaigns, activations, and digital experiences for major European advertisers. Comparable to Swarm in its UK base, mid-sized agency profile, and technology-enhanced brand activations for enterprise clients.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swarmltd
• Xx.com/swarmgrp
• Facebookfacebook.com/swarmgrp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Swarm