Meet the Man Behind London’s Floating Ad Lights
Ever wonder who’s behind those bright, scrolling ads puffing out from the tops of black cabs? Turns out it’s a guy named Piers Mummery, founder and CEO of BrightMove Media. He’s the mastermind turning taxis into moving billboards, and he’s aiming to cash in on a £25‑40 million market of advertising space.
Why Are Taxis Getting a Glow‑up?
Imagine riding in a cab that’s also a neon billboard. Those pop‑up digital screens on London’s cabs bring ads to life—fast, flexible, and wow—all while the city churns beneath them. It’s like a city‑wide rave where everyone can see your brand.
Piers Mummery: The Brainy Entrepreneur
How It All Began
BrightMove Media launched in December 2012, but the first TaxiCast cab took to the streets in June 2013. Within six months, key clients had hopped on board, and the business was already turning heads.
What Makes Piers Tick
He’s driven by a simple idea: use the eye‑catching power of a moving cab to make advertising unforgettable. Piers believes every cab can whisper a message or tell a story—right on the spine of the city.
Our Cab‑Wandering Clients
- MasterCard – Because who doesn’t love a sparkly payment?
- Billy Elliot & Mamma Mia! – Crazy ticket sales up, thanks to style.
- Time Out – Keeping Londoners in the loop.
- LondonlovesBusiness.com – Local stories get a new stage.
These names aren’t just big brands; they’re proof that when your ad’s on wheels, you’re almost guaranteed a fresh trajectory.
The Future Is Bright
According to Piers, the expansion of these spiffy “floating billboards” is only just beginning. With more cabs set to carry ads, you’ll see the city sparkle like never before—think of a night sky of moving fireflies, all telling stories and selling stuff.
So next time you’re stuck in traffic or just cruising through London, keep your eyes peeled. Those glowing cab adverts might just be the next big thing, brought to you by a guy with a vision and a temperament that’s as bright as the screens themselves.
Video:
BrightMove: Turning London’s Black Cabs into Mobile Ad Superstars
Geography meets messaging. BrightMove’s clever geo‑targeted ads mean whatever kind of message or brand you’re looking for pops up right on the cab you’re riding in. Fancy a special offer on your nearest post‑code? Or a midnight movie promo for the night‑owl commuters? The algorithm swaps the billboard’s content just in time.
Years in the Lobby of the TfL
It took Mummery several years of paperwork, patience, and strict health‑and‑safety drills to convince Transport for London that bright digital screens on the taxis won’t distract pedestrians or cause chaos.
From a Small Squad to a De‑Facto Cab Fleet
- BrightMove’s core team: 6 people.
- Current TaxiCast fleet: 25 taxis.
- This year’s ambitious goal: ramp up to 300 cabs.
- Near‑future target: 1,500 – 2,000 TaxiCast cabs, roughly 10 % of all London black cabs.
Numbers That Make You Go “Whoa!”
Mummery is forecasting a tidy turnover of £1.5 million in the first year, jumping to £4.9 million the following year, and then smashing through a £9 million mark by year three. He’s not shy about showing the math—after launching two dozen businesses in the last twenty years, he knows a thing or two about scaling.
Beyond the Cab: A Marketing Vet Turned Vehicle Creative
With a solid background steeped in sales and marketing—and a side‑project salad patch for the garden chain Shoots—Mummery brings a sharp eye to the ad‑on‑taxi game. The future of London’s streets looks bright, literally. Stay tuned as we dive deeper with Mummery himself.
How did you go from running garden centres to this?
Taxi‑Top Ads: The Long‑Road to a New Idea
For roughly two decades, the notion of splashing ads right on the sides (or the tops) of taxis has been floating around the U.S. market, but none of us really got excited about it. It felt like the kind of concept that says, “Hold on—why has nobody actually tried this before?”
Why the Idea Stalled
We discovered the elephant in the room: a sizeable mix of hurdles. On the tech side, you need the right hardware that can fit onto the short space of a cab door without messing up the ride. On the regulation side, city permits can be as tricky as navigating a city on a drunken night out. Still, we were determined. The obstacles were intimidating, but they also made the challenge irresistible.
When the Pieces Clicked
- Digital boom: The internet and media tech had finally leveled up, giving us all the tools to make flashy, eye‑catching displays.
- Market hunger: Advertisers were craving fresh ways to grab commuters’ attention.
- Team synergy: Our co‑directors brought fresh eyes and a gap‑ready mindset—just like a crew of explorers finding a hidden treasure map.
So, with the wind in our sails, we dove into the project. It’s been a wild ride, but who knew a taxi could become so much more than simply a means of getting from point A to point B? After all, every ride deserves a bit of show‑stopper magic.
What were your first steps towards researching and building what is, let’s face it, quite a complicated product?
Getting the Wheels Turning
Before we could hit the road, we had to dive head‑first into the maze of regulations that keep London’s traffic running smoothly. Transport for London isn’t just a casual hobbyist club – they pulled the curtains back and gave us the playbook for becoming a licensed operator.
Step One: The Legal Roadmap
We studied every clause and compliance checkpoint. Think of it as the city’s rule‑book, but written in legalese. We figured out exactly what paperwork, safety checks and certifications we’d need to get our cabbies legally recognized.
Step Two: Listening to the Drivers
We sat down with the local taxi crowd – the real MVPs. Their daily grind, their pain points, the quirks that only a person behind the wheel would know. By tuning into their frequency, we could tailor a solution that’d make them feel like we were speaking their language.
Step Three: The Media Slot
Who’s going to catch the eye of the public? And how will they buy into this new ride‑sharing dream? We broke down the media ecosystem, barked a few hot takes, and mapped out a strategy that would have the city’s eyes glued to our progress.
Step Four: The Big Money Train
Getting the lights on, the gear off, and the whole operation buzzing required a hefty paycheck. Building an infrastructure‑heavy business in London is no small potatoes. We dug out the financing we’d need to push this concept from sketch to street.
In short: A tangle of regulations, a choir of drivers, a dash of media savvy, and a mountain of capital – that’s the formula that turned our vision into a moving reality.
You raised £680,000 seed investment – was that hard?
How One Idea Turns into a Snowball
Why a Single Push Can Set the Stage
When you have a solid concept, the moment you get that first person on board, the whole thing starts moving faster than a snowflake hitting an ice patch. That’s the magical snowball effect: the more people you throw in, the bigger and faster it rolls.
The Easy Road to Big Gains
- Simple to Run – It’s a no‑brainer operation with low hurdles.
- Massive Potential – Even a humble start can turn into a massive opportunity if you let it snowball.
- People Like People – Consumers invest in human passion, not just the product. Show the love, and they’ll join the ride.
Putting the Ball In Motion
At launch, we had to prototype, test, and do a lot of groundwork. Think of it as the first few rolls of a snowball: you shape it, you roll it across the field, and you watch it gain momentum. No shortcuts, just the good old legwork that turns a dream into a tangible reality.
In short, that one initial supporter is the spark, the simplicity of the business is the fuel, and the people’s love keeps the whole thing moving. Keep rolling, and watch the snowball build—one person at a time.
How much have you raised to date?
What’s Next in the Bus‑Tastically Accelerated Taxi Story?
Picture this: our little venture just crowned itself king of the parking lot and is ready to roll out a whole, shiny fleet. But we’re being a bit privacy‑savvy right now, so we won’t spill the exact numbers — we’re still closing a funding round and keeping the secret counts under lock and key.
Seed Round Success
- We kicked things off with a seed round that knocked the first set of taxis off the ground.
- That first batch proved the concept works — think of it as our demo drive of the future.
Expansion Capital—The Big Bang!
With the prototype humming along nicely, it’s time to launch the next leg of our adventure.
- We’re raising expansion capital to add 125 new taxis to the mix.
- Those will hit the road in late spring, just in time to bring some sunshine to city streets.
Future Funding: Because Money Never Sleeps
Once those 125 drivers hit the roads, we’ll need another round of funding to keep the wheels turning and the cash flow steady. It’s the natural next chapter of our growing story.
What does the outdoor and taxi advertising landscape look like, in terms of competition and opportunity?
Taxi‑Deck Ads: Turning London’s Autos into Mobile Billboards
Did you know the UK advertising market is roughly £16 bn? Of that, out‑of‑home (OOH) media – the giant billboards, bus stops and that stuff on the street – owns about £1 bn. But it’s not set in stone any longer. Think back to the old poster‑boards slapped beside t‑axis: yesterday, paper and paste; today, a slick digital display that can change on the fly.
Why Digital is the New Frontier
- Laser‑focus targeting. With smartphones and data streams, brands can pin down the exact audience they want. “You’re a front‑line driver, right? Bluetooth, Wi‑Fi, we’ll beam your brand into your pocket whenever you’re close to the right person.”
- Fast iteration. Gone are the long cycles of print ads. Now an ad can be updated automatically each time the taxi makes a new stop.
- Creative freedom. In the old days, you’d get a static poster. Now you can embed videos, animations, even QR codes that scan directly in the backseat.
Taxi‑Top Ads: A Legacy Gets a Modern Make‑over
Taxi advertising has been a thing on London streets for four decades. It’s proven – every curbside taxi in the city carries a bill “behind the curtain”. Our job isn’t about advertising from scratch; it’s about upgrading that legacy. We’re reshaping those taxis into high‑tech canvasses where “the next time you pull into a busy stop, you might see a brand relevant to that moment”.
Market Potential – Starting with London
Take just the London scene: the ski‑sliding market for taxi‑top ads could hit £25‑40 m. Picture this – that figure isn’t even counting the 2,000 taxis we’re tailoring now. That’s only about 10 % of the city’s fleet. If that number skyrockets, the revenue is ready to ride the bus.
Beyond London – The Road Aisles, Markets to Scope
Think Liverpool, Manchester, Scotland, and the wider UK. But why stop there? The Middle East and the US have buzzing street markets, and the Far East—imagine the untapped giggles on Tokyo’s bustling streets.
In short, Taxi‑Top ads are the next generation of out‑of‑home, where the car itself becomes a message board and your brand hits you right where it matters. The road is open, the numbers look good, and the only thing a bit missing is a package of sawdust and poster‑paste—deemed old‑fashioned.
Tell about some of the regulatory difficulties you’ve had…
Breaking the Taxi‑Top Brand with a Dash of Determination
There’s a single, daunting fact that set our shoes on fire: the UK had never seen taxi‑top advertising before. We were the trail‑blazers, and that meant we had to build a brand from scratch inside the maze of transport regulatory rules.
Meeting the Tower of Regulators
Regulators usually look for a gentle ripple, not a wave. Everything’s reactive, never pretty proactive, so every success feels like a discovery and every rejection a wild goose chase.
- Safety first – rigging up electrical safeguards, making sure the screen’s lights don’t become a hazard.
- Hit‑stop tests – ensuring the taxi‑top ad doesn’t distract drivers so much that a collision waits for their answer.
- Engineering checks – mounting, wiring, software, everything to prove we’re not just waving a white flag.
- Pen-centred compliance – the details are so granular it’s like building a house with Lego blocks.
So we had to do a meticulous “no‑stone‑unturned” audit to convince TfL that our display is as safe as a tight‑knotted shoelace.
“Stakeholders in the Balancing Act”
As soon as we cleared one hurdle, a brand‑new dud popped up. Persistence became a passport – three whole years of “yes, I’ll keep at it” was required.
And while TfL’s priority sits on the public’s safety (because roads are not playgrounds), our entrepreneurial eye kept screaming, “Hold on, can we speed up this process?” The tension was real, but we kept it sympathetic – a clever mix of “helping out the council” and “pushing the business boundary”.
Let’s Remember Eyetease
We’re not alone on the ride: Eyetease launched taxi‑top adverts in 2010, but their tech is not the same screen format we employ. They’re another competitor, so we’re playing a game of “who draws the bigger crowd?”
In short, the journey to be the first taxi‑top brand in the UK was like driving on a crooked road with a toolbox, a trust‑record, and a big dose of optimism. And we kept pressing forward.
Who do you see as your main competitors, and how will you beat them?
We’re the Pioneers – And the Road Ahead is a Real Jungle
Being the first to launch a product isn’t a walk in the park. The hurdles we’re facing will hit any later‑comer who dreams of following in our footsteps.
The Real Trick: Making Reality Look Easy
On the surface, everything appears simple. Behind the scenes, the regulatory maze is a beast that only the bold can tamper with. Tackling it gives us a competitive edge that nothing else can match.
Who’s the Competition?
- Digital Ad Giants & Billboards: They’re the heavyweights in the advertising world, armed with a lot of experience and budget.
- Outdoor Advertising Titans: Companies like CBS Outdoor and their peers have deep‑rooted relationships with media planners and buyers.
- Other Media Formats: The ripple effect of pulling money out of traditional channels is real – it creates a tug‑of‑war among them.
- Indirect Threats: Big budget constraints and the shifting priorities of advertisers will influence how much spend gets directed to our platform.
Bottom Line
We’re in the race at the front gate – no direct rivals yet. But those who want the same crown will face a wicked obstacle course that will test their endurance.
You manufacture in Britain – why? Isn’t that more expensive?
Why Building Our Product Locally Makes Sense
Scale & Customization
When you’re not ordering tens of thousands of units, the whole “out‑of‑the‑box” model feels a bit off. Instead, we custom‑make each product right here, which lets us tailor every detail to what you need.
Top‑Notch Quality Control
- Closer oversight – We can spot issues before they become problems.
- Consistent standards – Every batch sticks to the same high bar.
- All of this means that, surprisingly, it’s actually cheaper to build in the UK when you consider the management side of things.
Feel the Pride
There’s nothing quite like shouting “We built this in Britain!” at a product launch. It’s a proud moment for the team and a neat brag‑point for customers.
World‑First Technology
And let’s not forget, this technology is a world‑first for the UK – a true milestone for local innovation.
Thanks for your time Piers.
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