Senior brand strategy, made in the North East.
I'm Kris Wood, a brand strategist based in Newcastle upon Tyne. I work in person with founders and leadership teams across the North East of England, and remotely across the UK, on the decisions that make a business clearly understood and confidently chosen.
Strategy happens in a room. I can be in yours.
Brand strategy isn't a document you receive. It's a set of decisions your leadership team makes together, and the hardest ones happen face to face. Being based in Newcastle means I can be at your boardroom table anywhere in the North East without it becoming a logistics project.
It also means I know this market. The North East is full of ambitious businesses competing well beyond the region, in engineering, technology, professional services, manufacturing and more. What most of them lack isn't capability. It's a brand that carries their real value into every sales conversation, pitch and hire.
I work with businesses across the region:
- Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead
- Sunderland and Wearside
- Durham and County Durham
- Northumberland, from Morpeth to the border
- Teesside, Middlesbrough and Stockton
- And remotely, anywhere in the UK
Not a big agency. Not a freelancer. A strategist at your table.
Most North East businesses looking for brand strategy face a false choice: a large agency where the senior people vanish after the pitch, or a freelancer who executes without challenging the thinking. I sit in the gap. Senior strategic work, delivered personally, with design and build handled by Ayuda, my delivery studio, when you need it.
Every engagement starts the same way: a conversation about where the business is, where it's going, and what's getting in the way. From there it's usually one of three routes: a focused Brand Foundation Consultation, a full Brand Strategy build, or ongoing Strategic Advisory.
Brand strategy in Newcastle and the North East: common questions
Do you only work with businesses in the North East?
No. I'm based in Newcastle upon Tyne and much of my work is in person across the North East, but I work remotely with founders and leadership teams across the UK. Strategy sessions work well in a room, and they also work well on a call.
Where do strategy sessions happen?
Wherever your leadership team thinks best. Usually at your offices anywhere in the North East, in a hired workshop space in Newcastle, or remotely. The venue matters less than getting the right people in the room.
How much does a brand strategist cost in Newcastle?
Every engagement is scoped to the business, so I don't publish fixed prices. A focused Brand Foundation Consultation is the most common starting point. After one conversation I'll tell you plainly what I'd recommend and what it costs.
What does brand strategy for a Newcastle business involve?
The same rigour I'd bring to a national brand: a four-phase process of Diagnose, Define, Direct and Embed. Research, positioning, messaging and leadership alignment, turned into decisions your whole business can operate from.
What kind of businesses do you work with in the North East?
Founder-led and leadership-driven businesses, typically CEOs and MDs who are scaling, diversifying or restructuring. Sector matters less than ambition and a leadership team willing to make real decisions. If you want a sense of how I think first, start with the Thinking essays or the free Brand Clarity Scorecard.
Let's talk. Kettle's always on.
Thirty minutes about where your brand is and where the business is going. No pitch, no pressure, and honest input either way.