Nowadays joins Auspicious
In what’s very probably the biggest news we’ve ever shared here, we’re downright delighted to announce that Nowadays has been acquired by the Auspicious Group.
If you don’t know them yet, Auspicious are an absolute rocketship of a creative services group. In less than two years they’ve pulled together an eclectic crew of brilliantly complementary agencies - from US non-fiction specialists Blue Chalk Media to UK ad makers Studio Yes and the DBLX, specialists in digital transformation and people-first tech. All outstanding in their own fields, and now under one virtual roof.
Auspicious have already landed at number 7 in the EVCOM UK Top 50 so they’re not messing about. Exactly the kind of momentum we wanted to be a part of.
There’s history here too. We’ve known Auspicious co-CEO Barnaby Cook since we were all kicking about at Newcastle Uni getting up to all sorts of drama society shenanigans. Barnaby launched Casual Films at the same time we kicked off 3angrymen back in 2006, and we’ve been trading content production war stories ever since.
He even starred in our very first attempt at a “production”, a catastrophically underappreciated (mostly due to its remaining catastrophically unfinished) sketch show we filmed before we had any idea how to work a camera.
The rest of the Auspicious leadership team bring heavyweight experience of their own. Rachel Pendered and Mark Killick built Media Zoo into a Sunday Times Fast Track 100 company and PR Week’s fastest-growing agency. We’ve no doubt we’ll be learning a lot from them.
So what changes? Not the core of what we do. Nowadays will keep on Nowadays-ing, making films that matter for incredible charities, brands and organisations of all shapes and sizes.
Auspicious know what we’re good at and what we care about and want to make that the foundation of what comes next. It means greater reach, doors we couldn’t open on our own, and the kind of collaboration that comes from being part of a larger group.
For our clients, it means the same core team, the same approach - but with added firepower. More reach, more capabilities, and more confidence to take on bigger challenges together.
We’ve loved being our own blend of small and scrappy over the years, but in truth we really can’t wait to be working alongside all of the fantastic folk in the engine rooms of all our fellow Auspicious agencies.
Onwards.