Studiospace has officially launched in the Australian and UK markets, connecting major brands with independent agencies around the world.

The technology platform, an online marketplace for creative, digital and marketing services, has secured $2.5 million in a venture funding round led by Fuel Ventures for the major expansion.

Australia’s biggest brands can now have direct access to the best independent specialists around the world to carry out their digital and marketing projects. In return, independent creative, digital and marketing agencies can now access brands that were previously out of reach.

The move follows nine months of successful beta testing in the UK and Australia. Brands such as Jaguar Land Rover, TAL, Aviva and Gala Games are already on board working with the list of 100 specialist agencies covering 16 service categories in 12 countries.

The company is locally led by co-founder and managing director of Australia, Robin Scarboroughand kate walkergeneral manager of customer services.

Scarborough was a founding member of the team at Market Gravity, the global innovation agency acquired by Deloitte Digital in 2017. Robin moved from the UK to Australia following the acquisition, spending three years as a partner at Deloitte Digital.

Scarborough explains: “Big companies have a problem accessing talent, even if they don’t realize it yet. The marketing landscape has evolved tremendously over the past 50 years, but the way we buy and sell services has not.

“As needs have become more complex, bundled deals with holding companies and large consulting firms have become the norm due to simple, single-vendor relationships.

“However, the problem is that much of the deep specialization, innovation and great thinking is now found within independent agencies around the world. It is difficult for large companies to easily find the best agencies for their projects, and often even more difficult to contract them quickly as a new supplier,” he said.

“Studiospace was born to solve this enigma and the success we have achieved in such a short time is proof that it works. Over 70 projects in just nine months with budgets up to $2 million and now additional venture capital support. We are reimagining the holding company model for the digital age,” he added.

Shiv PatelChief Investment Officer at Fuel Ventures added, “Having seen the growth of Studiospace since it began operations earlier this year, we were delighted to have the opportunity to invest in such an exciting company.

“The management team has exceptional experience both in the industry and also having successfully scaled and exited a previous company.

“This, coupled with the top brands using the platform, has already made a compelling investment case for us. We look forward to working closely with Studiospace in the years to come to ensure the continued success of the business. .

The process is simple and flexible by design. For brands, Studiospace provides access to a global community of agencies through a single framework contract. The smart platform matches briefs with the best candidate agencies and Studiospace guarantees the quality of each agency’s work.

For agencies, joining Studiospace opens up access to a wide range of new clients, while dramatically reducing their selling costs with its streamlined matching and screening process. Additionally, the platform alleviates cash flow uncertainty by paying agencies on billing day.

Walker brings a wealth of knowledge and agency experience to the company. She previously founded boutique brand agency Human and also led the delivery of bespoke agency team models for WPP’s largest clients in Australia and New Zealand.

Walker said: “We truly understand the pressure points for agencies and are extremely inspired to create a real alternative that works. One that helps them play a bigger game and grow without the drag.

“We are not field doctors, we do not influence the selection process, but we are obsessed with finding and bringing the best freelance talent to our platform and our clients. It’s a win-win,” she added.

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Top image: Kate Walker and Robin Scarborough