Daniel [AKA Dan the Man] joined the team in July. He’s currently completing his Apprenticeship and learning with the team in all things tech SEO. He’s made a real impact at Tao (and is finally shooting shots back at Matt when he winds him up).

He also always has chuddy (translation: chewing gum for normal people) on his desk for everyone, which is great.

Our Creative Content and Media Producer Lucy graduated from her Apprenticeship in April, with a Distinction of course. We took a trip out to celebrate in Manchester, with the graduation being held by The Juice Academy and a talk from Andy Burnham. We couldn’t be prouder of her.

She also really loved wearing the hat and gown and loved that we screamed obnoxiously loud when her name was called. Proper loved it.

Tao Digital Founder Matt Tomkin Playing Golf

One of many activities throughout the year was virtual golfing. Literally the most ridiculous activity we could have chosen as non-golfers, but incredibly funny nonetheless.

Matt successfully ‘kaboomed’ the house on the kids game we were playing. Big win for him. The professional golf instructor was very proud.

Eco Affect was born in October, our newest ‘own project’ that aims to support people with sustainability, environmental concerns, carbon footprint reduction and cost savings. This is a huge project for us, and one we see being a really big part of Tao in the future (so keep your eyes peeled).

Our Business over Beers events are casual, no-bullshitting networking events held at a local micro-brewery (and we LOVE hosting them). We had many great nights this year, from ordering a ton of Carrs pasties and peas with no spoon to serve, to 5 of our clients belting out ballads on karaoke at stupid o’clock in the morning afterwards. Classic.

We also nicknamed an attendee ‘pea-man’ after he dipped his pasty straight into the tub of mushy peas. A great way to get them to return, of course.

Graphic of Tao Digital's 6th Birthday Party

In May, Tao Digital turned 6 years old. We ate cake, probably ate too much pizza, Charlotte drank the Domino’s garlic and herb dip, spoke about Tao’s future, reminisced about the past… all that nonsense. It was great.

In September, work started on our new video studio. Located literally above us, we started clearing out an old office ready for work to begin on our video space (watch out for more on this in 2024!). We also started working with Jack Savage, an amazing videographer and creative producer who’ll help us bring our, and clients’, visions to life.

Bonus: Jack immediately started to sass Matt which is always hilarious.
Con: He ate so much of the selection box chocolate considering he’s only in the office one day a week (rude).

This October, we celebrated 2 of our team members buying their very first homes. This was a HUGE milestone for them, and one that Matt is incredibly proud of. Tao is all about providing opportunities to our team, and this year was a biggie.

Client wins are always worth celebrating. The hard work, pitching, panicking that you said ‘spub and hoke content’ instead of ‘hub and spoke content’. We’ve onboarded some wonderful clients from a wide range of industries this year, and some are already absolutely flying. Can’t wait to see what lies in store for them in 2024.

Image of Tao Founder Matt Tomkin Running in a Marathon

Matt is an avid runner, and he ran a lot this year. He ran in the forest, he ran in the desert. He almost died (not funny) but we’re still really proud of him. The marathons are pretty gnarly, so big props to him for cracking on with them.

Image of Team Member Catherine Hayes Holding a Certificate

Catherine was on it with the courses this year. She completed her FAA Level 2 Award for First Aid in Mental Health in order to better support the team. She also became our resident Keith Lard (fire marshal for non-Boltoners or non-Phoenix Nights enthusiasts).

She also completed a cocktail making course. Just as important as the above, obviously.