New company statistics: Marketing, advertising and design
In the 12 months to August 2026, Companies House records in this analysis show 25,643 new companies incorporated in the Marketing, advertising and design group. Companies House records in this analysis show that the number of new companies was broadly unchanged within the stated period. The data does not establish why the count changed.
A company is counted here if any of its filed SIC codes falls in this group, so a company can appear in more than one group and these figures are not a UK total for the sector.
| Month | 2024–25 | 2025–26 |
|---|---|---|
| Sep | 1,877 | 2,427 |
| Oct | 2,028 | 2,558 |
| Nov | 1,888 | 2,049 |
| Dec | 1,573 | 1,750 |
| Jan | 2,225 | 2,414 |
| Feb | 1,913 | 1,787 |
| Mar | 2,256 | 2,296 |
| Apr | 2,324 | 2,153 |
| May | 2,194 | 2,167 |
| Jun | 2,320 | 2,067 |
| Jul | 2,522 | 2,275 |
| Aug | 2,311 | 1,700 |
These are the places Launch Register publishes, ranked by companies in this group over the latest rolling 12 months. They are not every UK local authority, so they do not sum to the group's national total. A place counting fewer than ten companies in this group is not shown.
| Local authority | Companies | Change |
|---|---|---|
| London | 11,990 | ▲ 13.9% |
| Manchester | 443 | ▼ 11.8% |
| Birmingham | 367 | ▲ 8.9% |
| Leeds | 231 | ▲ 5.5% |
| Edinburgh | 224 | ▲ 5.7% |
| Glasgow | 179 | ▼ 10.1% |
| Liverpool | 152 | ▼ 11.6% |
| Bristol | 128 | ▲ 14.3% |
| Leicester | 122 | ▼ 2.4% |
| Cardiff | 116 | ▲ 18.4% |
| Nottingham | 108 | ▲ 21.3% |
| Sheffield | 99 | ▼ 39.3% |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 95 | ▲ 37.7% |
| Cambridge | 50 | ▼ 41.9% |
| Reading | 38 | ▼ 2.6% |
Each row counts companies that filed the exact code over the latest rolling 12 months. A company filing more than one of the group's codes is counted under each, so these do not add up to the group total. A code counting fewer than ten companies is not listed.
| SIC code | Description | Companies |
|---|---|---|
| 73110 | Advertising agencies | 14,757 |
| 74100 | Specialised design activities | 7,953 |
| 73120 | Media representation services | 2,596 |
| 70210 | Public relations and communications activities | 2,464 |
| 73200 | Market research and public opinion polling | 902 |
How this group is defined
This is a Launch Register editorial grouping, not an official SIC section (Curated across SIC 2007 divisions 70, 73 and 74 — an editorial grouping, not an official SIC section). An editorial grouping — not an official SIC section — covering advertising agencies (73110), media representation (73120), market research and opinion polling (73200), public relations and communications (70210), and specialised design (74100). Note that 74100 spans design beyond marketing (including fashion, interior and industrial design); photography, translation and general consultancy are classified elsewhere.
The mapping is published as version sic2007-lr-v1, with all 5 five-digit codes listed below, so this analysis can be reproduced rather than taken on trust. The full mapping, and how dormant, non-trading and unfiled codes are treated, is in the methodology; the guide to SIC codes explains what these codes mean.
The 5 SIC 2007 codes in this group (sic2007-lr-v1)
70210, 73110, 73120, 73200, 74100
- Multiple SIC codes
- A company may file up to four codes and can appear in more than one broad group. Group totals are not additive, and the UK share is calculated on that basis.
- Self-classification
- SIC codes are chosen by the company at filing. A filed code is not verification that the company does that activity, or is trading at all.
- No “primary” code
- Companies House does not designate one filed code as primary, so neither do we.
Launch Register analysis of Companies House public data: private limited companies with a filed SIC code in the Marketing, advertising and design group (sic2007-lr-v1), incorporated in the 12 months to August 2026.
https://launchregister.co.uk/company-statistics/industries/marketing-advertising-design/ · Data through August 2026 · Last updated 2026-09-18 · Coverage 2024-09/2026-08 · Methodology methodology-v1 · Industry mapping sic2007-lr-v1
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