When two British entrepreneurs set up a small performance marketing outfit in Dubai back in 2019, no one could have predicted the storm it would create. Six years on, TIDAL Digital is no longer the scrappy start-up with a laptop and a dream – it’s a brand-led agency setting a new global benchmark for how creativity and performance can collide.
Co-founder Liam Troughton laughs when he thinks back to the early days.
“One minute it was just the two of us throwing ideas around, the next we’ve got a 35-plus-strong team across continents. Honestly, it’s been a whirlwind.”
A Dubai Original
TIDAL isn’t an import or an outpost. It’s homegrown in Dubai – built here, scaling from here, and proving that the UAE can produce agencies that punch at world-class level. The city’s energy has been the perfect backdrop: fast, ambitious, constantly moving. It mirrors the way TIDAL works.
Breaking the Mould
What makes TIDAL stand out is its no-nonsense formula: brand-led creativity fused with sharp performance marketing. Everything is built in-house – from SEO and analytics to content and storytelling – with one aim: campaigns that look good, work hard, and scale fast.
A big part of that innovation is their Search and Discovery service, designed to help brands cut through not just on Google, but across TikTok, YouTube, Reddit and emerging platforms. It’s marketing that follows the customer wherever attention goes next.
Winning Big
The industry has noticed. In just the past two years, TIDAL has stacked up global recognition:
– Global Agency Awards 2025 – multiple wins on first-time entry
– Global Search Awards 2024 – Best Integrated Search Agency
– MENA Search Awards 2024 – 7 wins from 8 nominations, including for work with Rolls-Royce & Dubai International Boat Show..
Not bad for a Dubai start-up that launched just before a global pandemic.
Built Different
That pandemic timing could have sunk the business, but instead it forced TIDAL to move faster, hire smarter, and back raw potential over shiny CVs. Some of the team started with little experience; today they’re running award-winning campaigns for global names.
“It’s about mindset and ambition,” says Co-founder Simon Lomas. “We’ve built a culture where creativity and performance genuinely coexist, and where everyone’s pulling towards the same purpose.”
What’s Next
As it hits its sixth birthday, TIDAL has its eyes firmly set on the future: expanding into new markets, evolving services around AI-driven marketing, and doubling down on Search and Discovery. The vision is clear – to become the go-to brand-led performance agency worldwide, while keeping the boutique, personal touch that’s been there since day one.
Or, in Troughton’s words: “No fluff, no ego – just relentless focus on execution and process enhancement. That’s what gets results.”
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