Thousands of people headed to Manchester this week for the first ever MAD//UpNorth.

Marketing Beat editor Lee Kenny and senior reporter Tom West attended the two-day celebration of northern brands, businesses and agencies, here’s what we learned:

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Lessons from the “coolest” man in marketing

Having been billed as “the coolest guy in marketing”, Kenyatte Nelson, chief membership and customer officer at Co-Op, did not disappoint.

During his talk, entitled ‘Oldie but a Goodie – How to Modernise a 180-year-old business’, he discussed what makes the Co-Op so strong and how it manages to be relevant.

Providing both insight into the brand and detailing some of his career highlights, Nelson was an engaging and passionate speaker on Wednesday afternoon.

“I use two words to describe what it’s like to work at the Co-Op – it’s beautifully frustrating,” he said.

“It abides by cooperative principles. Things like education, empowerment. We do all that we can because we’re owned by the people.”

Nelson described the Co-Op’s commitment to good causes as a “really interesting dance” they have to do as a business.

“The vast majority of all consumers, customers and, in our case, members, they don’t care about our purpose, they care about theirs,” he said.

“The fact that we are a purpose-driven organisation is great, but we need to think about that in the context of the purpose of the people we serve.”

Managing to be both direct and laidback, Nelson also shared his experiences of working with retail brands in the UK and the US, during what he called his “squiggly career”.

“I became a marketeer because, fundamentally, I was really interested in why people did the things that they did. I’m more an anthropologist, than I am a businessperson.”

In conclusion, he told the audience: “All marketing, by the way, should perform, There’s no such thing as ‘performance marketing’. The only question is, along which time horizon.” (LK)

There were lots of laughs with Lucy Beaumont

Comedian, writer and broadcaster Lucy Beaumont brought smiles and laughter on Wednesday afternoon as she told a packed audience what makes people from the North so great.

“I think it’s the slightly lower IQ,” she joked. “It’s a good thing. It makes people a bit warmer to each other, there’s not as much competition.”

“[There is] less pressure in general, parents don’t want as much from you,” she said with a knowing smile.

Beaumont, who is from Hull but spends her time in Manchester and Sheffield, said her southern friends “love coming to the North”, because it “just feels friendlier”.

“I always say, you’ll never drink alone in the North,” she said.

Speaking to Sam Dolan, founder of strategy agency Jazz Hands, Beaumont did reveal that one of the best comedy gigs she’s ever performed was not in the North, but in Cheltenham.

For creatives, she said the North was too often portrayed as “gritty”

“I hate that word,” she said. “For people in my family, they love the council estate they live on and take pride in it,” she said.

“How many films or TV programmes do you see in the North where the lead character wants to get out of the situation they’re in? Why? That’s something I’d really like to see changing.” (LK)

Gary Neville highlighted Manchester’s untapped potential

During our time at the event, one thing was clear – Manchester, and the North more generally is very much on the up. Any fears that the festival might simply have been taken over by London glitterati were unfounded, with speakers and attendees proudly representing the region.

According to Houghton and Brain, the seed for the event was planted when former Manchester United star Gary Neville asked what was stopping them from holding a MADFest-style event in Manchester when he spoke in London in 2023.

And sure enough, 18 months later Neville was on stage again exalting the virtues and the vastly untapped potential of his home city, which has in recent decades added a growing business presence to its already rich cultural and artistic heritage.

“We are a city that gets things done,” he said, “If you invest and show commitment to Manchester, it will always pay it back.”

If the overwhelming demand and local interest in MAD//UpNorth is anything to go by, those words certainly ring true, and many were the talks given by local agency bigwigs whose firms are now directly competing with their southern neighbours for the same big name accounts.

Notably, EssenceMediacom North COO Paul Cooper revealed that as much as 50% of their business comes from London.

Having seen the clear enthusiasm and obvious potential that both Manchester and the north exhibits in droves – we may soon begin to see a shift away from London being the overwhelming power centre for the marketing and advertising industries in the UK – and that can only be a good thing. (TW)

Surprise, surprise, distinction pays

Time and time again we are told that if a brand truly wants to establish a loyal customer base and grow market share, it needs to be distinctive and have a clear identity.

After all, it isn’t rocket science, if customers can’t tell you apart from your competitors, how can you ever expect to grow?

This was something emphasised by Asda VP of marketing Adam Zavalis during his conversation with industry stalwart and host Simon Lloyd, explaining how the supermarket’s strong Yorkshire roots were key to its identity and its success as the UK’s leading discounted grocer.

“We’re from Leeds, we’re from Yorkshire. We should be proud of that. So we’ve addressed that and we’ve got Jodie Whittaker, of Dr Who fame, who is from just down the road originally from Huddersfield, near Leeds, doing all of our voiceovers.”

This is in a similar vein to Very, whose head of brand Katie Minchin-Smith spoke of the value of returning to its own Liverpool roots by prominently including the city in its popular ‘flamingo’ TV ads.

Case in point – both brands have enjoyed very successful marketing performances in 2024, with Very notably pushing out its biggest campaign to date.

Unsurprisingly then, uniqueness pays – and in this case that comes in the form of pride in each brands’ respective northern roots. It’s something we’ve known for a long time, authenticity sells. (TW)

Ticketing issue needed better communication

When a ticketing “issue” meant security had to stop delegates from eventing on Wednesday morning, hundreds were left standing outside in the cold for several hours.

At first people were patient, excited about the day ahead. Then they quietly grumbled. Nobody knew what was going on.

It was a dry, bright day but there was a biting wind and the building’s exterior channelled the cold air towards the waiting line.

After a while, event staff walked along asking for speakers to identify themselves and a lucky few were escorted inside.

Still no information was given. Rumours circulated. Was the event at capacity? Would it be one-out / one-in?

How long do you wait before you cut your losses and find a warm café?

People stamped their feet and rubbed their arms for warmth. Hands were buried in pockets. Nobody was dressed for two or three hours outside. Feet began to ache.

A few people approached security to ask to be let inside to use the toilet. They were shepherded in and back out again.

Still there was no announcement.

Security staff were polite and professional but had little information beyond the fact that nobody else was allowed to enter.

Eventually people became fed up and began to leave. At the front of the long queue was a welcome sign that read: “Enter the Madness”.

By the afternoon the problem had been resolved, and we were allowed to enter. Organisers Mad//Fest issued an email apology on Wednesday afternoon but it was a poor start to the day and not a great look for the event or the city. (LK)