Revenues and Headcount up at Maritz Research

In the UK, customer experience measurement specialist Maritz Research has reported a revenue increase of £1.07m, from £8.4m in the fiscal year 2009 to £9.4m in 2010. In the last 12 months, the firm has also recruited 80 new researchers in Europe and Asia.

Founded in 1973, Maritz Research offers a range of research solutions to measure branding, segmentation, attitude/usage, pricing, and new product development. In October, the company added to these services through the acquisition of US-based social media research firm evolve24, which combines analysis of traditional media and social media to provide clients with quantitative metrics on the perception of brands, products and services.

The firm puts its 2010 increase in revenue down to 'significant wins' from clients in the automotive, financial services and hospitality industries.

'We are delighted with our results in 2010,' says Stephan Thun, EVP and MD, Europe. 'With our highly attractive portfolio, a continuing increase in market demand for effective customer experience management solutions and the recent acquisition of evolve24, we are expecting an even higher increase in 2011.'

Employees number more than 800 at the firm's offices in North America, Europe and Asia, with over 180 staff based in the UK and Germany. In the last 12 months, the firm says it has recruited 80 research specialists across Europe and Asia, including 40 people in the UK.

As a result of this growth, the firm is expanding its UK operations in the summer by moving its London-based call centre to a listed building in Smithfield Market, where it will increase the centre's capacity from 65 stations to 110.

In addition, the firm also plans to relocate its 9,000 sq ft Marlow operation to 15,000 sq ft offices in High Wycombe in the autumn.

Web site: www.maritzresearch.co.uk .