Fairfax Manchester: Bringing Industrial Heritage to Modern BTR
Client
Allsop
Services
Brand Identity, DOOH, Organic Social Media Content & Management
Allsop approached us to create a distinctive brand for Fairfax, a new 488-unit Build to Rent development in Manchester. The challenge was to establish a strong identity and narrative that would stand apart in a competitive rental market while connecting authentically to the site’s industrial heritage. Once home to coppermakers, weavers and textile industries, the location played an important role in Manchester’s industrial and innovative legacy. We needed to translate this history into a contemporary brand that would resonate with future residents, communicate the lifestyle on offer and create a strong, recognisable presence across the development and wider Manchester market.
We created a brand identity rooted in both Fairfax’s industrial past, and future community. A cross-structured brand mark references the area’s weaving heritage and the intersection of people, paths and possibilities, while typography inspired by local ghost signs reinforces the heritage connection. A palette of soft pinks, rich ambers, charcoals and earthy tones balance heritage with contemporary living, supported by candid messaging and vibrant lifestyle photography featuring real people. The identity was extended across every touchpoint, from OOH, on-site branding and wayfinding to amenity sub-identities for spaces including the rooftop terrace, workspaces and pet parlour. Our media strategy combined TikTok, Meta and Google PPC to build awareness, consideration and demand, with high-footfall OOH locations across Manchester maximising visibility and establishing Fairfax in the local market. The Fairfax launch has delivered strong performance across the marketing funnel since activity began in November 2025. Paid Search generated 187 leads from 8,874 clicks and 87,938 impressions, with a click-through rate above 10%.
Paid Social delivered more than 400,000 impressions and reached over 75,000 accounts across Instagram and Facebook, generating 138 leads. Creative performance was particularly strong, with the Made for Renting campaign driving 92 of the 138 social leads. Together, the activity has established Fairfax as a distinctive new Manchester BTR brand on the map, while generating demand in the competitive Manchester rental market. Paid Search PPC (the core of the led gen activity) generated over 8,874 clicks and 87,938 impressions. We marked 187 leads at a cost per lead of £48 which is fairly low for a competitive BTR market like the one in Manchester. Our CTR was also above 10% which is on par with industry benchmarks for the channel. For our paid social campaign which was positioned in the strategy as a mid funnel channel we saw a great drive in awareness with over 400k impressions delivered and over 75k accounts reached on Instagram and Facebook. the campaign also delivered 138 leads at a £43 cost per lead; where we saw the single image with the ‘made for renting’ messaging deliver most of the conversions (92/138)
