MASH delivers 200% revenue growth in 12 months after in-house agency model

MASH, in-house agency team curator, has delivered its strongest performance to date, recording 200% revenue growth just one year after shifting its business towards an in-house agency-led model across Asia-Pacific.

The performance follows a deliberate move away from predominantly project-based creative work towards longer-term embedded partnerships, alongside the appointment of a new all-female operating leadership team headquartered in Singapore.

Over the past 12 months, MASH has doubled its previous peak revenue and increased recurring income by 300%, giving the business greater revenue visibility and a stronger platform for growth.

“A year ago we made a very deliberate choice to shift our strategy and move away from unpredictable project work toward embedded-contracted partnerships,” said founder and board director Tash Menon-Verheul.

“As MASH nears its ninth birthday, it’s incredible to reflect on the business it was and the business it is today. Reinvention isn’t easy for any business - but we saw the opportunity, took the long shot, relocated the business to Singapore. 

"I appointed the leadership team in Singapore and empowered them to lead and execute a MASH business fit for what marketeers
today need from their partners. 

"They are the ones who have been instrumental in delivering these results and building the next chapter for MASH, and I couldn't be more proud.”

The MASH leadership team

The leadership team that is credited with leading this evolution are CFO & Partner, Robyn Hayward; Head of Talent and Growth Dianne Hummal and Jolene Cornford who in July was promoted to Managing Director from General Manager in recognition of the growth of the business.

“Our focus was to build a deliberate strategy for a more resilient and commercially sustainable business. We've shifted from a project-based agency model to a more predictable, partnership-led business,” said CFO & Partner Robyn Hayward. 

“This has resulted in improved revenue visibility, stronger forecasting and, most importantly, a platform for scalable growth.”

Partnership with Google

The in-house agency pivot is exemplified by MASH's global in-house partnership with Google, where the business designs, builds and runs embedded marketing teams across multiple business areas. 

From creator programmes through to sales enablement and marketing
operations, MASH helps Google scale capability across Asia-Pacific.

“Our work with Google has been an important proof point for what modern in-housing can look like at scale,” said Cornford.

“Across my conversations with brand and marketing leaders, one thing is increasingly clear: As channels proliferate and the pace and volume of marketing increases, managing the people, partners, content and workflows behind it all is becoming a significant operational challenge.

“We’ve focused MASH around helping brands solve exactly that, building the teams, operating models and capability that allow in-house marketing to work effectively and scale. It’s a very natural growth opportunity for the business.

“But the bigger story, for us, is how the model has grown. We’ve been able to take what works, build the right operating infrastructure around it and expand that capability into new markets and business areas. That’s exactly what we believe good in-housing should do.”

Today, MASH’s embedded teams support clients across Australia and Asia-Pacific, with capability spanning Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, India, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.

“Operating across nine markets has taught us that regional scale doesn’t come from trying to make every market work in exactly the same way,” said Cornford. 

“It comes from building a strong operating model around brilliant local people, giving clients consistency across the region without losing the local expertise and context that makes the work land.”

MASH to expanded embedded marketing

Looking ahead, MASH plans to build on the model by expanding its embedded marketing capability across Asia-Pacific and continuing to invest in its people, operating infrastructure and strategic partnerships.

“The conversation with brands has moved on,” said Cornford. 

“Most organisations already have some form of in-house capability. The challenge now is making it genuinely work - getting the right people, structure, governance and specialist capability around it so it performs over the long term.

“That’s where we see the opportunity for MASH. We’ve spent the past few years learning what it takes to design and run these models in practice, and the next phase is about taking that experience to more organisations across the region.”