Plaice to meet you – Welcome Matt

The year is 2022, the world has turned upside down due to a worldwide pandemic and people have become more motivated than ever to get the most out of life, so I decided it was time for me to do the same. Flipping 360 from agency life centred in the hustle and bustle of London and Manchester city centres, I decided to take a plunge and join the amazingly talented, creative and studious bunch at the Huddersfield-based integrated marketing agency Fishtank.
I’m genuinely chuffed (see, I’m already picking up the local Yorkshire slang) to take a dip in the other side of the marketing pond.

Joining this creative agency as a Senior Accounts Manager, I am delighted to help guide the team and allow them to flourish using the invaluable skills I have learnt from my previous 15 years of marketing agency experience. With a brilliant client list and a really enviable collection of work behind them, the future is certainly bright.

You might be wondering, how did my journey at Fishtank begin? Well, from the moment I first met Founding and Managing director Damien and Head of Creative Joe, I was sure that this was the right place for me, the enthusiasm they shared for the business was infectious and the ideas they touched on about how to move forward certainly excited me. After getting a tiny insight into the passion that clearly runs behind everything produced at Fishtank, I quickly saw the fantastic scope for growth I would have within this team and how my experience and expertise could help Fishtank achieve amazing things.

Having worked in agency land for 15 years now, I’m confident in saying I’ve experienced both the highs and lows that come with this fulfilling and innovative industry- and as the world moves towards ever more digital ways of working I can’t wait to explore it with Fishtank. 

Like I mentioned earlier, I’m originally from the other side of the Pennines, Manchester born and bred, but although my roots originally tie me to the worker bee originating city, I actually spent most of my formative agency years in London, getting stuck into boundary-pushing projects on behalf of big names like Coca-Cola, Google and Zurich Insurance. 

After 9 years of absorbing as much knowledge as I possibly could from work spanning: TV advertising, print, digital and events- the call of a ‘proper cuppa’ was strong and I made my way back home. 

Landing back in Manchester I joined BJL group to work with clients including Crown Paints, Subaru and Rustlers. Something I quickly realised was that the level of work being created in The North was easily competing with the big smoke in London and was delighted to be part of something that somehow felt more real to me than what I’d experienced before. More latterly I’ve been working with McCann Manchester, helping them take care of Aldi Supermarkets and loving everything that comes with working with a big, fast-moving retail client. 

It’s fair to say I bring some wide-ranging experience with me and more than a few tales of agency life that might make you laugh out loud (I might tell you some of those in the future).

To be real with you, in my eyes what I aim to bring to the Fishtank team most of all is a strong belief that great agency/client partnerships really can produce amazing results. We don’t usually set out to change the world but in this environment, you never know where the next conversation might lead you and that should be exciting for everyone involved! 

If you want to learn a little more about me and my experience (as if I haven’t gone on enough)… Check out my bio and learn an interesting fact or two: https://fishtankagency.com/staff/matt-devall/