A series of strategic appointments and promotions across the North East’s business landscape is signalling a period of ambitious growth and reinvention for the region, with firms doubling down on specialist expertise, ethical business practices, and future-focused sectors like artificial intelligence and the circular economy.
Law firm strengthens insolvency team with B Corp ethos
Newcastle-based law firm Muckle LLP has appointed specialist insolvency solicitor Ryan Butler to its banking and restructuring team. Mr Butler, who holds a professional qualification in insolvency from the Insolvency Practitioners Association, brings experience from both commercial law and in-house roles. He will work alongside partner and leading North East insolvency expert Kelly Jordan, who also chairs the R3 North East regional committee, and associate Sarah Farish.
The appointment comes as the firm, which was the first in the North East and Cumbria to achieve B Corp certification in 2023, continues to build on its commitment to social and environmental performance. Muckle’s B Corp initiatives include partnering with SmartCarbon to track its carbon footprint, operating a community fund, and offering staff paid volunteering days. In 2025, the firm relaunched its social mobility strategy to make recruitment more inclusive. Louise Duffy is the Partner and Head of Banking & Restructuring at the firm, which won Insider North East’s Corporate Law Firm of the Year Award in 2024 and is consistently recognised by legal guides.
“My previous in-house role gave me valuable hands-on experience,” said Mr Butler. “Muckle has a brilliant reputation, with real experts, and its B Corp initiatives and commitment to giving back to the community are something I wanted to be a part of.”
Public affairs consultancy bridges North and Westminster
Public affairs consultancy Stephenson Mohl has named Neil Whittaker as its new director of business development. Mr Whittaker, who holds an MBA from Teesside University and is a Regional Council Member for the CBI, will operate between the company’s Newcastle headquarters and its Westminster offices.
His role will focus on connecting regional organisations with national policymakers and securing “soft landings” for businesses looking to invest in northern England. The company, founded in 2017 and expanding its Westminster presence, works on delivering development and renewables projects, enhancing clean energy credentials, and managing renewable energy projects aimed at UK energy self-sufficiency. The firm’s name is inspired by the regional roots of founder Mark Stephenson and the German sword-making Mohl family who settled in Shotley Bridge centuries ago.
Mr Whittaker, previously Director of Marketing and Communications at Learning Curve Group for almost nine years and with senior marketing roles at Hargreaves Services plc, said: “Stephenson-Mohl Group is a genuine regional success story, helping the North East attract investors while working with clients to influence decisions made in Westminster.”
Tech consultancy eyes £50m turnover under new AI-focused CEO
Digital product consultancy hedgehog lab has promoted Malcolm Seagrave to chief executive officer, succeeding co-founder Sarat Pediredla, who stepped down at the end of 2025 to pursue other projects. Mr Pediredla will remain an advisor through 2026 while focusing on new ventures including professional services intelligence firm thredspan.
Mr Seagrave, formerly managing director for the UK operations, has a background in scaling technology businesses at firms like BJSS and AND Digital, and held innovation roles at Vodafone and Morrisons. His promotion comes as the B Corp-accredited consultancy targets £50 million in turnover and plans to create hundreds of jobs across northern England and Scotland, with operations in Newcastle, Leeds, and Edinburgh, and engineering teams in Romania and Bulgaria. Expansion into Manchester and Glasgow is under consideration.
A key driver of growth is artificial intelligence. “Pure-play AI technologies represent around 40% of our business, and that is growing,” said Mr Seagrave. The company has invested heavily in AI, embedding it into sales, product development, and design research to enable rapid prototyping. It offers dedicated AI packages to clients, from one-week ‘Ignition’ services to seven-week ‘Blueprint’ product development. This focus follows the firm’s acquisition of Edinburgh-based innovation network Label Sessions in December 2025 and a £6.3 million investment from BGF in 2023.
Housebuilder names new regional managing director
Barratt and David Wilson Homes North East, the country’s largest housebuilder, has appointed Jo Ainsley as its managing director. Ms Ainsley, who was born in Middlesbrough, brings more than 18 years of experience in the construction industry from previous roles at Taylor Wimpey and Vistry.
“I’m thrilled to have started my role,” she said. “I hope I can help the division continue to grow, retain its five-star reputation and create communities that people are proud to call home.” She added that she enjoys building teams and giving people opportunities to thrive in a role that varies from site visits to supporting land acquisition.
Port appoints manager to drive diversification and circular economy
Port of Sunderland has brought in Anth Phinn as its new business development manager to capitalise on rising demand and strategic growth. Mr Phinn, who joins from Royal Dutch LV Logistics where he was UK agency manager and previously worked at Clarksons Port Services, will work with port director Matthew Hunt and commercial manager Sven Richards.
His remit includes diversifying the port’s activity across four key commercial areas: the circular economy, commodities, multimodal developments, and offshore oil, gas and renewable energy supply chains. The port is positioning itself as a hub for the circular economy, with tenants like Wastefront constructing a facility to convert tyres into sustainable aviation fuel. Another key project is the TCP Circular plastics recycling plant, due operational in 2028, which will use pyrolysis technology to process 100,000 tonnes of mixed plastic waste annually.
The port, which handled 650,000 tonnes of cargo in 2023, has 265 acres of land including development sites with Enterprise Zone status. It regularly handles commodities from steel and wood pulp to project cargo and supports the renewable energy sector with its deep-water berths. “As someone who is from the North East and lives locally, I’m proud to be joining Port of Sunderland at such an exciting point in its journey,” said Mr Phinn.
