Bristol through and through
By Martin Powell, founder and managing director of Empica
Bristol is a dynamic city and one that is close to our hearts. Many of our team were born and raised in Bristol and feel proud that Empica has played a part in the city’s evolution and transformation over the last three decades.
A potted history of Bristol
Bristol’s strong identity and independent thinking dates back to its sea-faring history when businesses in the city sponsored voyages of discovery to America and to its part in the industrial revolution in Victorian times.
The city grew rich on the back of importing new products, including chocolate, tobacco and sugar. It played a major part in the growth of the transatlantic slave trade and in its abolition.
Later, the great engineer Brunel’s idea to use Bristol as the stopping off point from London to America brought the Great Western Railway, the building of world-first ships, such as the ss Great Britain, and spawned new trades and factories. That legacy also forms part of the city’s culture and is personified in the Clifton Suspension Bridge – the city’s enduring symbol.
The 20th Century saw major changes with aerospace and aviation becoming a major sector in the city – culminating in Concorde. Europe’s biggest tobacco factory was built in the city and later closed. The century saw constant change from the Bristol Boxkite first flown in 1910 through to the world renowned graffiti artist Banksy.
How is Bristol developing now?
Understanding Bristol’s history and legacy helps the Empica team to give the best advice to organisations that want to engage with the city’s businesses and residents. We know why Clifton is a more prosperous area than Bedminster. We know that the main tobacco factory was in East Street, Bedminster before being moved to Hartcliffe and that our buzzing cultural hub called The Tobacco Factory was a minor player making cigars!
We know that the financial district used to be centred around Corn Street but the area is now given over to restaurants and the night-time economy. Over the years, we have been involved in re-shaping many districts of the city and beyond.
For 10 years we provided PR and communications consultancy to the developers and other stakeholders involved in creating Bristol Harbourside from Canon’s Marsh. What was once run-down railway sidings, closed warehouses and a surface car park is now home to Hargreaves Lansdown, waterside homes and thriving hotels, restaurants and businesses.
We were also involved in advising on and delivering the PR and communications for Port Marine at Portishead, from the demolition of the power station chimneys to the opening of Waitrose and the stylish, fashionable marina, attracting many celebrity residents.
Both these projects involved addressing the hearts and minds of local people, communicating change, dealing with mis-steps along the way and tackling the inevitable crisis moments as they happened.
We were there to deal with the media when a contractor fractured a gas pipe bringing Bristol’s rush-hour traffic to a halt and we were there with naturalist and TV presenter Chris Packham CBE looking at how to preserve nature alongside the Severn.
In 2023 we are working on promoting the transformation of the former Elizabeth Shaw Chocolate Factory in BS5 into new homes and workplaces – some of the Victorian factory buildings now forming the shell of stylish new apartments.
We have supported communications on moving Bristol’s major fertility clinic late in 2022 from the grounds of Southmead Hospital to a new purpose-built base alongside the motorway.
We are also supporting two major law firms in moves to new eco-friendly offices in 2023 as the city’s business landscape changes once again and adapts to the post Covid-19 era of hybrid working.
What future developments will shape Bristol?
Bristol continues to be a fast-changing city where connections are vital. Whether it is contacting the City Council, one of the city’s MPs or the King’s representative in the city, the team at Empica know how to do it – and are doing it for our clients.
Having empathy and knowledge of the different communities that make up the city, knowing their fears and hopes enables us to communicate for our clients in a powerful way that gets results.
Over the next few years Bristol is likely to see a continuation of the trend of people living in the central area. Workplaces are set to become homes and the city’s reputation as a media centre will grow as Channel Four expands and the film and television industry builds up.
The redevelopment of the former Filton Airfield into new homes and an arena venue will shift the focus of the city again – in a way not seen since the construction of Cribbs Causeway. There are also plans for major changes at Temple Quarter and Western Harbour in the pipeline.
How has Bristol’s media scene changed?
When Empica started out over 30 years ago (and traded as Martin Powell Communications), there was no internet and the media scene in Bristol was dominated by two powerful newspapers – Bristol Evening Post and Western Daily Press – alongside the BBC and commercial television and radio stations.
Today the influence of the newspapers has declined. Social media brings challenges but also gives every organisation the opportunity to create its own media, build up its own audience and get its message across in a much more controlled way.
Smaller media outlets, both online and in print, have powerful voices in their communities as trusted sources of news.
Businesses can look at the sport’s clubs as an example of how to successfully shape messages and build rapport. Where once Bristol City FC hosted a string of sports journalists, they now communicate through their own team, putting videos online, creating forums on the web and ensuring their stories get to fans unedited.
Operating in the present, with a strong knowledge of the past, means that Empica is well placed to advise businesses on how to play a meaningful part in Bristol's future.
About the author
Martin Powell was born and grew up in South Bristol where he started his career on local newspapers, including many years as Chief Reporter of the Evening Post, covering major stories that affected the lives of Bristolians.
Martin founded his own PR company Wordsmiths Press in 1989, which evolved into one of the best known PR agencies in Bristol and the South West, Martin Powell Communications.
The company rebranded as Empica in 2008. Martin continues to play an active, hands-on role within the business, working closely with our senior management team and a well-established, in-house team of PR and communications professionals, former journalists, copywriters, social media specialists and a videographer.
