Skyscraper Consulting – Your New Management, Marketing and Brand Consultancy

ABOUT

Founded by Crispin Reed in 2016, Skyscraper Consulting brings a unique combination of deep business experience, academic insight, and coaching expertise to help organisations and their leaders navigate complex challenges and achieve sustainable growth.

With over 40 years of commercial experience, Crispin has excelled in leadership roles across diverse fields, including marketing services, advertising, design, and brand innovation consultancies. His career also includes client-side experience in the beauty and fragrance sectors, active involvement in start-ups, and a proven track record in driving results across industries such as FMCG, pharmaceuticals, luxury, automotive, property, beauty, sports, travel and leisure, alcoholic beverages, and fashion.

Crispin’s skill set goes beyond functional expertise. As an executive coach with an ILM Level 7 Certificate, he works with senior leaders to foster growth, inspire innovation, and develop impactful leadership strategies. His credentials as a qualified qualitative researcher (Fundamentals of Moderating | RIVA Training Institute, Washington DC) further enable him to uncover deep insights through active listening and nuanced analysis.

Skyscraper Consulting provides support to clients across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the U.S., addressing challenges in areas such as corporate strategy, business planning, growth strategies, leadership development, and brand management.

Crispin also brings an academic dimension to his work, lecturing on corporate strategy and innovation at universities in the UK and the Middle East. He supports students from undergraduate to executive MBA levels, combining contemporary business theory with real-world applications.

Crispin’s thought leadership includes co-authoring:

The 7 Myths of Middle Age – Implications for Marketing and Brands (with Dr. Helena Rubinstein, then at Cambridge University).
The Nature of Communities (in partnership with the University of Dundee).

At the heart of Crispin’s approach lies a commitment to deep listening, thoughtful analysis, and delivering practical, actionable solutions that help individuals and their businesses achieve their full potential.

SERVICES OFFERED

Commercial strategy & business planning

Supporting leadership teams with strategic planning and development of business plans.

Brand consultancy

Supporting all aspects including brand positioning and strategy.

Qualitative research

Unearthing actionable insights through primary research.

Innovation

Working particularly with marketing and innovation teams to fill NPD pipelines.

Workshop design and facilitation

Creating and delivering workshops to address specific challenges. For example, team building, winning new business, presentation skills.

Inspiring Creativity

This is a bespoke workshop in collaboration with renowned artist, Finlay Cowan, tailored to suit the needs of the individual organisation with the primary aim of inspiring creativity by taking inspiration from the music industry.

Brand films

Collaboration with partner film production companies, scripting, storyboarding and execution of brand films.

Executive coaching

Helping leaders establish firm personal foundations and to see above the clouds.

INSPIRING CREATIVITY

A half-day interactive workshop using insights from the music industry to inspire, entertain and provoke marketers and agencies.

WHAT IT IS:

Renowned creative, Finlay Cowan and experienced brand strategist, Crispin Reed, have combined forces to provide an unusual and inspiring workshop designed to provoke and disrupt thinking for marketing, brand and innovation teams as well as agencies.

WHO WILL BENEFIT:

Marketing, brand and innovation teams and agencies who are already performing at a high level because they have an innate curiosity and embrace new and different thinking. Or, teams that are stuck on a particularly thorny problem and want lateral inspiration to help them break through.

Finlay is best known for his work with Storm Thorgerson, designing album covers for the likes of Pink Floyd, Muse and Audioslave, film work for Oliver Stone, several bestselling practical art books and design consultancy for a host of global brands.

Crispin has a well-rounded and deep knowledge of marketing and brands having built a successful career in leading advertising, design and brand consultancies in sectors such as packaged goods, pharmaceutical, fashion, automotive and beauty.

This workshop is offered as a stand-alone session or can easily be incorporated
in to broader team meetings. It can also be tailored to help address specific issues or hot topics within companies.

Get In Touch For More DetailsGet In Touch For More Details

IN THE MEDIA

Crispin is a regular contributor to variety of vertical and horizontal press and designated contributor to Huffington Post; TV/radio appearances on the BBC Politics Show, BBC Panorama, Junior Apprentice, Channel 5 News, Radio 4 ‘You and Yours’, Sky Swipe channel.

Huffington Post ArticlesHuffington Post Articles

Marketing Week ArticleMarketing Week Article

Conference Speaking

Crispin offers his services as a conference speaker. He has spoken on many subjects but is happy to be thrown a new challenge and prepare a fresh presentation.

Previous subjects have included

Feelings you can’t ignore – the role that emotions play in branding
The 7 Myths of Middle Age – implications for marketing and brands

Unearthing Killer Insights – the whys and hows
Promoting countries by subverting stereotypes

Previous speaking engagements include

Specialty Coffee Association of America Minneapolis 2008
Marketing Conference, Monaco 2008
InStore Conference 2008
Catering & Hospitality Conference 2009
Spa Business Association 2008 and 2009;
CIM South East 2009
Global Marketing Network Annual Conference, Cass Business School 2009 & 2010
Luxury Marketing Council Brazil 2010; Florida (Miami, Palm Beach, Orlando) 2010; New York City 2010
World Brand Congress, Mumbai, India 2010
Guest lecture, Mumbai Business School, 2010
Luxury Marketing Council Boston, Feb 2011
Chartered Management Institute Channel Islands, March 2011
World Whisky Conference, April 2011
World Marketing Conference, Ghana, June 2011

UK Consumer Forum, October 2011
Rare Forum, November 2011
World Whisky Conference, March 2012
Food & Drink Innovation Network, April 2012
Consumer Insight Forum March 2013
World Innovation Convention, Cannes, November 2013
‘Everybody Shops’, Department of Business, Skills and Innovation March 2014
Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, October 2014
World Medical Tourism Convention, Washington D.C. Nov 2014
Speciality and Fine Food Fair, London Excel March 2015
Beauty Symposium, London 2017
Later Living conference hosted by Property Week, 2021
Realty 2.0 Dubai, 2022
Advertising Who Cares? 2024
Smashing Stereotypes: Institute of Directors panel chair, 2024

“

Crispin managed to grab everyone’s attention from the word go at our annual Beauty Symposium in London (http://theredtree.co.uk/) and delivered a very insightful talk, "Smashing Stereotypes" with a delightful twist. With the extremely clever use of prosthetic makeup, Crispin transformed his appearance in front of the audiences’ eyes and, with his unique perspective and depth of knowledge, challenged perceptions. A really inspiring and relevant presentation delivered with great passion, he certainly put his heart and a huge amount of effort into the detail. Crispin was not only very convincing (as an 85 year old man) but also a real delight.

Thoroughly enjoyed listening to you speak. Thank you for putting such immense effort in to this and making our event so memorable and special.
Michelle Grayson, The Beauty Symposium

“

Crispin came and spoke on 'Unearthing killer customer insights' at our recent event RARE Forum (www.rareforum.co.uk). His presentation was both insightful and engaging and his contribution throughout the day helped make the day. I have the highest respect for Crispin and his experience and I can't recommend him highly enough
Adrian Swinscoe, Convenor of the Rare Forum

Executive Coaching

Crispin holds an ILM Level 7 Certificate, an internationally recognised qualification for executive coaching at senior management and leadership level. He has coached C-suite executives in sectors such as marketing services and tech through to founders of start ups in their early growth stage.

Time is the most precious of commodities, particularly if you are a senior executive
Commenting on the benefits Crispin delivers, one CEO observed:

Time to reflect on issues
Time to talk to someone knowledgable about what’s been going on
Time to garner some advice and get some illumination on topics that I wouldn’t have necessarily considered
Time to put things into perspective
Time to dig further than peripheral thoughts and find out best practice going forward
Time for new inspiring ideas to come through /brainstorm
A friend/a support/ a mentor/coach to talk to and here their thoughts. It’s very insular running a business and it’s nice to be able to have someone else’s view every month and get out of yourself/ego