Liquid

What Liquid does

Liquid (legal entity: Liquid Agency Ltd) is a Liverpool-based creative agency founded in 2000 by Steve McGauley, operating as a privately held group organised around three sub-brands: Liquid Lab (cultural insights and brand strategy), Liquid Create (creative and activation execution across design, photography, video, social, and experiential), and Liquid Brands (independent brand development house for scaling founder-led, dormant legacy, established, and talent-led brands). The company serves enterprise and mid-market clients primarily in fashion, lifestyle, retail, sports, and wellness, with a documented roster that includes Levi's, Barbour, Berghaus, Mitchell & Ness, Tessuti, Leeds United FC, Liverpool ONE, Scotts, Candy, and Southport Flower Show. Its operating model is an 'Expert Collective' that combines a lean in-house team with a global network of culturally connected freelance thought leaders, assembling bespoke teams for each client brief rather than staffing projects from a fixed full-time bench.

The business model is professional services: project-based engagements invoiced on hours worked or fixed quotes, with optional Service Level Agreement (SLA) retainer hours purchased annually and unused within 12 months cancelled. Stated hourly rates for additional amendments are £70 per hour (creative) and £90 per hour (technical or investigation), with a 50% deposit required before project commencement. Go-to-market is direct enterprise sales with no intermediaries or resellers; client acquisition is supported by an organic content channel (Lab Notes blog), Instagram and LinkedIn presence, and a portfolio of published case studies. Distribution is UK-centric (Liverpool HQ, London office), though the Expert Collective model claims global reach through its talent network.

There is no proprietary technology platform. The company's stated infrastructure is human talent curation rather than software; no API, no integrations, no patents, and no AI/ML capabilities are disclosed. In October 2025, the agency announced a major expansion and rebrand to Liquid Create, accompanied by the appointment of Rhodri Evans (former Head of Marketing at Gucci) as co-director, positioning the group as an expert collective built for the modern era of brand building with formal brand scaling services. The company remains founder-led with no disclosed institutional investment, no parent company, and no public funding rounds in the source material.

Name

Liquid

Legal name

Liquid Agency Ltd

Website

https://liquid25.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Liquid is a Liverpool-based creative agency group (founded 2000) that provides cultural strategy, creative execution, and brand scaling services to enterprise and mid-market clients in fashion, sports, lifestyle, and retail through an Expert Collective of senior freelance talent.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Creative and Brand Agency Services

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAA)

Keywords

• Brand strategy services
• Creative agency services
• Cultural insights consulting
• Brand activation campaigns
• Brand development scaling

Headquarters

HQ city

Liverpool

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Creative and Strategy Services: Project-based professional services including brand strategy, creative execution, digital media, video/photography/animation, copywriting, PR and marketing, advertising (online/offline). Revenue invoiced based on hours worked or fixed project quotes. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and retainer arrangements available.
2. Brand Scaling Services: Independent brand development house services for scaling founder-led brands, dormant legacy brands, established brands, and talent-led opportunities. Includes commerce, creative, and capital expertise.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Liquid is an expert collective creative agency that sells brand strategy, cultural insight, creative execution (design, photography, video, social, experiential), and brand scaling services to enterprise and mid-market brands. It delivers these through a lean in-house team working with a curated global network of culturally connected thought leaders, assembling bespoke teams per client brief across sports, fashion, wellness and lifestyle verticals.

Product overview

Liquid is an expert collective creative agency that provides a unified platform of three integrated sub-brands: Liquid Lab (cultural insights and brand strategy), Liquid Create (creative execution across design, photography, video, social and experiential), and Liquid Brands (brand development and scaling services). The group operates through a unique model combining a lean in-house team with a global network of culturally connected thought leaders, enabling bespoke teams to be assembled for each client brief across sports, fashion, wellness and lifestyle.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Liquid Lab Cultural insights and brand strategy platform that connects brand objectives to impactful execution through cultural insight and a global network of industry thought leaders, delivering actionable strategy that turns vision into market-moving outcomes.
• Liquid Create Award-winning creative and activation studio with 25 years of partnership with world favourite brands, providing integrated solutions across design, photography, video, social and experiential.
• Liquid Brands Independent brand development house bringing together expertise across commerce, creative, and capital to drive and accelerate growth for scaling founder-led brands, dormant legacy brands, established brands, and talent-led opportunities.
• Liquid (Group) — Expert Collective Expert collective built for the modern era of brand building, providing solutions across insights and brand strategy, creative and activation, and brand scaling services for sports, fashion, wellness and lifestyle sectors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Tessuti Liverpool store exceeded all footfall projections by over 20%
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Rhodri Evans (ex-Gucci)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 October 2025Rhodri Evans, former head of marketing at Gucci, joined as co-director alongside founder Steve McGauley to lead the new 'Liquid Create' model. Brings extensive luxury fashion marketing expertise to guide the agency's expansion and rebrand.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mother London: Independent, full-service creative agency founded in London, known for culturally resonant work for fashion and lifestyle brands. Closely comparable to Liquid in business model, independent structure, and creative-led culture.
• Ragged Edge: Independent London branding and design agency working on brand strategy, identity, and naming for ambitious consumer and lifestyle brands. Comparable to Liquid Lab / Liquid Brands in brand strategy focus.
• Mother Design: The design arm of Mother London, offering brand identity, design systems, and creative work. Comparable to Liquid Create on creative and brand scaling dimensions.
• Design Bridge and Partners: Global brand design and strategy agency (formerly Superunion and The Partners), serving premium consumer and lifestyle brands. Comparable to Liquid in brand strategy depth and lifestyle client roster.
• Anomaly: Independent creative agency with offices in multiple markets, blending advertising, brand strategy, and design work for premium consumer brands. Comparable to Liquid in its non-holding-company structure and brand-building orientation.
• The Brooklyn Brothers: Independent creative agency with London and NYC presence, focused on culturally led brand-building for fashion, sport, and lifestyle clients. Direct competitor for the same enterprise client verticals Liquid serves.
• Koto Studio: Independent brand and creative studio with offices in London and elsewhere, focused on brand identity and strategy for consumer and tech-forward brands. Comparable in independent structure and brand-first creative orientation.
• Uncommon Creative Studio: Independent creative studio founded by former Mother and Droga talent, focused on brand-building for ambitious challenger and heritage brands. Comparable to Liquid in independent model, design-led creative output, and premium lifestyle client base.

Broad incumbents

• Wieden+Kennedy: Iconic independent creative agency with global offices, famous for Nike, Levi's, and culturally influential campaigns. Highly comparable brand portfolio (especially Levi's, a Liquid client) and creative reputation.
• Droga5 (part of Accenture Song): Premium global creative agency known for culturally charged campaigns for brands like The New York Times, Under Armour, and Amazon. A larger incumbent in the same creative-led, culture-first space Liquid targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/liquid
• Instagraminstagram.com/liquidcreativeagency
• Facebookfacebook.com/liquidcreativeagency

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries3 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 Liquid