BRANDING agency The Beautiful Meme is reaching for international fame as it goes up against the world’s largest advertising agency at the European Transform Awards.

The agency, which employs eight people in Walmgate, York, has been shortlisted for the “best use of copy style/tone of voice” award for its work for The Student Housing Company. It goes up against Interbrand, which has 40 offices around the world.

The Student Housing Company, which is owned by global investment company Oaktree Capital Management, commissioned The Beautiful Meme to create a brand that would communicate service, trust and responsiveness, and build loyalty amongst UK and international students, parents and academic institutions.

Tom Sharp, director, launched The Beautiful Meme about a year ago with the ambition of becoming an internationally recognised brand agency, he said, and with a string of new contracts coming on line, including a campaign for AkzoNobel, the global paints and coatings company, it is making good progress.

Tom said the city’s ambitions, defined in its strategy for international trade, were inspiring.

“The council has a clear defined goal for the city and an ambition not to compete with Manchester or Leeds but to become a top ten European city. Our vision is something we talk about a lot and share internally and tell other people and that means we’re very focused on it.”

And to reach global heights, Tom said they collaborated with other local companies, as well as ensuring they had the ambition and quality of product behind there.

He said: “York has got fantastic networks. Lot of people within the city have networks all over the world.”

The business is designing materials for Lindum Turf through InTandem Communications, and collaborated with York St John Business School on the initial research for The Student Housing Company campaign.

The Beautiful Meme is in turn connecting other local companies, with York’s Harrison Signs fitting the Student Housing Company signage around the country, and it has engaged video company Parashoots to work with it on the AkzoNobel contract, in which it will launch a new paint for the aerospace industry.