Two former Nunwood researchers have set up a new qual agency, 6th Sense Consulting.

Richard Postlethwaite and Martin Reed left Nunwood to found the Yorkshire-based firm six months ago. Their clients are largely in the financial sector and include HBoS, Co-operative Bank and Dairy Crest.

The two-man team may expand in future, said Reed, but having worked for big companies, they are keen to keep 6th Sense ‘manageable’. He told Research: “The important thing to us is the personal stuff – you always get a director on a project. If you commission us you get us. Clients can literally pick up a phone and get one of us almost 24 hours a day. It’s very much a hands on approach.”

Before going it alone, Postlethwaite was senior client consultant at Nunwood, while Reed was divisional director. Reed said: “My reason for going was that it became qual and quant. I’ve specialised in qual now for 13 or 14 years and I didn’t feel personally that I could be going in selling quant studies.”

Reed says the two remain on “good terms” with Nunwood and have conducted some moderation work for the agency since leaving.

Author: Robert Bain