ESSENCE GLOBAL LIMITED
Operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of the WPP group, the company provides digital advertising and media agency services.
Get an alert when ESSENCE GLOBAL LIMITED files next
Leroy will email you the moment a new filing lands at Companies House — one short note per filing, nothing else.
Cash
—
Latest balance sheet
Net assets
£167m
+5.8% highest in 3 filed years
Employees
122
-75.3% lowest in 3 filed years
Profit before tax
£9.1m
-50.1% lowest in 3 filed years
Watch the reel
Our short-form breakdown of ESSENCE GLOBAL LIMITED's latest filing
WPP's digital agency Essence Global is winding down this legal entity, but it still pulled in £141m in revenue on the way out. 📦
Watchouts
Facts from the Companies House register and the latest accounts — not a rating
-
Accounts not prepared on a going-concern basis
In September 2024 it was announced that the Company would be transferring its operations, assets and liabilities into other fellow WPP Group companies. This is currently expected to happen in the second half of 2026, with the intention of liquidating the legal entity in 2027. The financial statements have therefore been prepared on a basis other than going concern.
-
Going-concern uncertainty disclosed
Net assets
3-year trend · vs Consumer Discretionary median
Accounts
3-year trend · Δ = latest vs prior filed period · latest reflected 2025-12-31
| Metric | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 | 2025-12-31 | Δ vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £184,468,000 | £185,948,000 | £141,251,000 | -24% | |
| Operating profit | £20,798,000 | £11,806,000 | £1,090,000 | -90.8% | |
| Profit before tax | £26,601,000 | £18,265,000 | £9,106,000 | -50.1% | |
| Net profit | £26,633,000 | £17,690,000 | £9,106,000 | -48.5% | |
| Cash | — | — | — | — | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £140,326,000 | £158,059,000 | £167,295,000 | +5.8% | |
| Net assets | £140,326,000 | £158,059,000 | £167,295,000 | +5.8% | |
| Equity | £140,326,000 | £158,059,000 | £167,295,000 | +5.8% | |
| Average employees | 546 | 493 | 122 | -75.3% | |
| Wages | £48,935,000 | £50,013,000 | £42,791,000 | -14.4% | |
| Directors' remuneration | £348,000 | £533,000 | £18,000 | -96.6% |
Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. The Δ column is the change from the prior filed period as a percentage of |prior|; lines a company doesn't report show —. About these numbers
Ratios
Computed from the line items above — sparklines read oldest → newest
| Ratio | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 | 2025-12-31 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 11.3% | 6.3% | 0.8% | |
| Net margin | 14.4% | 9.5% | 6.4% | |
| Return on capital employed | 14.8% | 7.5% | 0.7% | |
| Gearing (liabilities / total assets) | — | 75.9% | 69.5% | |
| Current ratio | 1.44x | 1.32x | 1.44x | |
| Interest cover | 4.23x | 1.19x | 0.12x |
Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.
Name history
Renamed 2 times since incorporation
- ESSENCE GLOBAL LIMITED 2017-10-19 → present
- ESSENCE DIGITAL LIMITED 2011-03-02 → 2017-10-19
- ESSENCE MEDIA LIMITED 2005-05-31 → 2011-03-02
Audit & accounting basis
- Accounting basis
- FRS 101
- Reporting scope
- Standalone (parent only)
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Not a going concern (break-up basis)
“In September 2024 it was announced that the Company would be transferring its operations, assets and liabilities into other fellow WPP Group companies. This is currently expected to happen in the second half of 2026, with the intention of liquidating the legal entity in 2027. The financial statements have therefore been prepared on a basis other than going concern.”
Significant events
- “In September 2024 it was announced that the Company would be transferring its operations, assets and liabilities into other fellow WPP Group companies. This is currently expected to happen in the second half of 2026, with the intention of liquidating the legal entity in 2027.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
2 active · 26 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WPP GROUP (NOMINEES) LIMITED | Corporate Secretary | 2016-02-29 | — | — |
| NICHOLS, Michael John | Director | 2024-07-03 | Mar 1985 | British |
Show 26 resigned officers
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| MORRIS, Timothy Simon | Secretary | 2005-08-04 | 2008-02-01 |
| O'GORMAN, Timothy Joseph Gerard | Secretary | 2005-08-04 | 2006-12-22 |
| WANSTALL, Mark Andrew | Secretary | 2008-02-01 | 2012-11-22 |
| DENTONS SECRETARIES LIMITED | Corporate Secretary | 2012-11-22 | 2015-11-05 |
| SH COMPANY SECRETARIES LIMITED | Corporate Secretary | 2005-05-31 | 2005-08-04 |
| SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED | Corporate Nominee Secretary | 2005-05-31 | 2005-05-31 |
| BARLOW, Colin | Director | 2017-03-24 | 2020-05-19 |
| BERRY MANSER, Anna | Director | 2024-01-09 | 2025-04-30 |
| BONSALL, Andrew Mark | Director | 2005-06-06 | 2015-11-05 |
| BRYAN, David John | Director | 2017-10-09 | 2019-06-27 |
| BYRD, Nicholas Gerard | Director | 2015-05-01 | 2017-10-09 |
| CHAPMAN, Clare Jane | Director | 2024-01-09 | 2024-09-06 |
| CLARK, Scott Michael | Director | 2024-01-09 | 2024-04-23 |
| EDWARDS, Anthony Mark | Director | 2005-05-31 | 2005-06-06 |
| IRWIN, Tim | Director | 2019-08-20 | 2022-03-03 |
| ISAACS, Matthew Francis Anthony | Director | 2005-06-28 | 2015-11-05 |
| LEE, Nigel Bruce | Director | 2023-01-12 | 2024-01-09 |
| NANCARROW, Mark James St John | Director | 2012-07-05 | 2015-11-05 |
| NORMAN, Robert David | Director | 2015-11-05 | 2017-10-09 |
| PATTERSON, Mark | Director | 2015-11-05 | 2017-10-09 |
| SANTABARBARA, Anthony | Director | 2020-05-01 | 2023-01-12 |
| SHEBBEARE, Andrew William | Director | 2005-06-06 | 2020-03-26 |
| STORRAR, Ryan Andrew | Director | 2022-03-03 | 2024-01-19 |
| WANCK, Rudiger | Director | 2015-11-05 | 2016-12-31 |
| WANSTALL, Mark | Director | 2019-08-20 | 2022-03-24 |
| INSTANT COMPANIES LIMITED | Corporate Nominee Director | 2005-05-31 | 2005-05-31 |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wpp Samson Limited | Corporate entity | Shares 75–100%, Voting 75–100%, Appoints directors | 2023-02-17 | Active |
| Essence Global Group Limited | Corporate entity | Shares 75–100%, Voting 75–100%, Appoints directors | 2016-04-06 | Ceased 2023-02-17 |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 153 total filings
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-20 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2026-07-15 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2025-11-20 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2025-07-21 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2025-07-21 | AD02 | address | Change sail address company with old address new address | |
| 2025-04-30 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-12-31 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2024-09-09 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-07-24 | RP04CS01 | confirmation-statement | Second filing of confirmation statement with made up date | |
| 2024-07-18 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement | |
| 2024-07-03 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-05-28 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2024-05-03 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-02-09 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-01-26 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-01-24 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2024-01-23 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-01-18 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2023-10-11 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2023-07-18 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 3
- Capital events
- 0
- Officers appointed
- 0
- Officers resigned
- 0
last 12 months
last 24 months
last 12 months
last 12 months
Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.