When the pandemic pushed staff away from offices and back into their homes, the traditional line between ‘work’ and ‘family life’ began to blur. But for Neil Lofthouse and Steph Cooper, it was already like that.
In Autumn 2020, these two siblings decided to go into business together – launching an events brand called Square Fish that combined Neil’s hospitality sector experience with Steph’s management expertise.
It was an idea everyone could really root for: A brother and sister teaming up to help get Manchester’s events sector back on its feet after being bordered up for most of the year.
“It was a ‘now or never’ moment,” Neil remembers.
“Owning a family business had always been a dream and something we talked about for many years. When COVID hit, and with time on our hands, we decided to make the dream a reality.”
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Those early days felt like a thrilling adventure. Neil and Steph got Square Fish off the ground in October 2020, and within a matter of weeks they had bagged their first client.
Square Fish Events
But then, things took a turn. COVID cases spiralled, another national lockdown was declared, and the events sector was suddenly, somehow, in deeper peril than before. Mass gatherings were forbidden, venues had to pull their curtains shut, and hundreds of thousands of industry personnel were left without work. Square Fish appeared to have been a cruel victim of circumstance: They’d only just gotten started, and already the company was facing an impossible hurdle.
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On the surface, the obvious option was to throw in the towel. But Neil and Steph were actually in a more privileged position than most. After all, when your back is against the wall, the people you can rely on are family.
“Like any bro and sis, we can have our moments, but when it comes to business, it’s the best team you can have,” Neil clarifies.
“We support each other, have each other’s back, pick each other up when feeling low, and most of all, trust each other completely. No agenda, just love and support. That’s what makes Square Fish so special.”
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Putting their heads together, the duo acted swiftly to switch up their business model, putting all the necessary plans in place to create a new concept that would support the provision of virtual entertainment. They called their creation Boxspoke – enabling companies to provide bespoke, branded engagement boxes that ranged from branded keepsakes and delicious gourmet treats to beverages, goodies and live interactive experiences.
Neil explains: “We wanted to find a way to keep pushing forward and adapt our offering so we all could come out of the other side.
“We soon found that lots of businesses still needed to focus on engagement, especially with staff and their clients. The way we communicated day to day suddenly changed overnight – and our new business model and service was there to support that.”
The whole thing was a rousing success. So much so, that when the world finally opened up again, Square Fish had built the reputation required to strike partnerships with big brands and create the kind of live events Manchester had been missing so much.
Today, Square Fish is working with worldwide promotion Bongo’s Bingo to bring its barnstorming events into workplaces, whilst also offering a wide range of events services such as venue finding, production, concept design, lineup curation, and general support and guidance for showrunners.
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Work has been diverse – including a festival for taxi hire software provider Autocab (which Square Fish designed and created from scratch; supplying stages, sports pitches and key speakers) and an interactive chocolate workshop for employees of Infinity Finance.
Neil and Steph’s team also hosted a fun-filled and highly-memorable summer party for Lounge fashion earlier this year – arranging a champagne reception, live fire dancers, sax performances and a DJ set.
One year on from launch, Square Fish has expanded its staff roster and turned into one of the most dependable, ambitious and creative events companies across Greater Manchester.
Neil believes the supportive nature of the city has played a pivotal role in making Square Fish the firm it is today – and what it is going to become in future.
“Manchester is a city like no other, the industry and people that support it are incredible,” he states.
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“Manchester offers it all, from fresh and creative concepts, incredible music, and club scene to a thriving event sector.
“We are constantly evolving and offering something new, attracting more and more businesses and events to the city – it’s all about the people for us, and we are a resilient bunch, especially with what we have had to overcome in the last two years.”
Throughout the past couple of difficult years, it’s often felt like one step forward, two steps back. This goes doubly for events and hospitality – a sector which is always first on the chopping block in the scenario of pandemic restrictions.
But Square Fish has already shown its capability to withstand and even thrive during the most testing environments. And Neil has plenty of hope for 2022.
“The future is bright, we are resilient, creative and support each other like no other city does,” he beams.
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“With more and more events coming to Manchester and an increase in demand for live events, we will come back stronger.
“There is still a challenging road ahead, however I have no doubt we will overcome it!”
Find out more about the amazing events Square Fish is hosting via the official website.
Gigs & Nightlife
Cage the Elephant at Manchester O2 Apollo – as electric, explosive and energetic as ever
Daisy Jackson
Candlelit dinners, intimate moments, cosy nights in – OR, for a few thousand of us, a Valentine’s Day spent putting our eardrums to the test and watching a slender rock star wriggle about for two hours.
I know which I’d choose, any day of the week, because despite a five-year break from touring, Cage the Elephant remain one of the most electrifying live acts on the planet.
And frontman Matt Shultz still remembered to get us flowers, flinging dozens of red roses into the audience. What a romantic.
The six-piece, formed back in 2006 in Kentucky, are back in town for the first time since early 2020.
In that time, Shultz experienced a medication-induced psychotic breakdown, something he’s spoken publicly about and that he addresses on stage, saying he feels ‘grateful’ to be back performing.
Cage the Elephant have got a new-ish album with them in Neon Pill, but they don’t give it much weight in the setlist, which is mostly filled with songs from Tell Me I’m Pretty, Melophobia and Social Cues.
For long-time fans of the band this is a relief.
It’s hard to beat their tracks like Trouble with its zig-zagging bass, the surprisingly moving Cigarette Daydreams which has an entire room belting along, and the slow-build, semi-Western anthem that is Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked.
They get off to a very strong start, firing through Broken Boy, Cry Baby and Spiderhead before they pause to say hello to a crowd that’s been suitably loosened up by the glam-grunge sound of Sunflower Bean, the New York outfit whose lead, Julia Cumming, is either teetering on fiercely high platforms or otherwise thrashing her bass from her knees.
As usual with Cage the Elephant’s staging, most of the kit is crammed into a third of the stage. You need A LOT of space for a firecracker frontman like Matt Shultz, not to mention his guitarist brother Brad.
I can only imagine how chaotic their house was growing up, but they’re the most entertaining siblings in rock n roll and yes, I’m aware how inflammatory that sentence is on a Manchester page.
There’s even a guitar smash towards the end from Brad, which I didn’t think was a thing we were still doing. In this economy!?
The energy they bring to the O2 Apollo is never-ending, like during Mess Around when it seems that Matt might wriggle out of his own skin, Cold Cold Cold where he gets so giddy he can’t keep both feet on the ground, and Sabretooth Tiger which is intensely lively.
The hardest working person in the crew is the poor fella trying to keep Matt spotlit as he judders and slinks back and forth across the stage.
Cage the Elephant clearly LOVE Manchester, even enquiring about the status of Big Hands (yep, still thriving).
And by the time we hit the encore, wrapping up with Come A Little Closer, it’s pretty clear this crowd loves them right back.
Cage the Elephant setlist
Broken Boy Cry Baby Spiderhead Too Late to Say Goodbye Good Time Cold Cold Cold Ready to Let Go Neon Pill Social Cues Halo Mess Around Trouble Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked Skin and Bones Rainbow Telescope House of Glass Sabertooth Tiger Encore: Back Against the Wall Shake Me Down Cigarette Daydreams Come a Little Closer
Pulp announce full UK tour with massive Manchester date
Danny Jones
Britpop legends Pulp are well and truly back, with the Yorkshire band confirming a whole new raft of domestic dates, including one absolutely massive gig here in Manchester.
The alternative, art rock and indie pop tastemakers of the 1990s originally booked in a run of summer shows last year after announcing an official reunion along with a first return to North America in more than a decade back in March, and now the Sheffield stars are making it a proper tour.
With Jarvis Cocker, Candida Doyle, Nick Banks and Mark Webber all set for a proper UK and Ireland comeback, we can’t wait to see them up on stage again.
And as far as Manchester venues, it quite literally doesn’t get bigger than this.
While their long-waited homecoming appearance at Tramlines Festival at Hillsborough Park already nailed on as a sell-out, especially after having handpicked the 2025 lineup, we’re all in with a chance to see them back in the North.
Pulp enjoyed a short reunion back in 2011 and couldn’t resist playing a number of special performances in the summer of 2023 either; it looks as though the reception from the fans who’d been patiently waiting for them to grace us once again.
Informing the masses on socials, Cocker wrote, “You deserve more – and we have more. In fact, we have More – (but that’s a whole other story… you’ll have to wait a little more time to hear that one). In the meantime: see you this Summer!”
Make of that somewhat cryptic middle bit what you will but yes, sir: you will indeed be seeing us and we can’t wait to scream ‘Do You Remember the First Time?’ in perfect pitch, we promise.
Scheduling their return to Manchester as what is now not just the biggest indoor entertainment arena in the city but one of the largest and most state-of-the-art in Europe, Pulp will be heading to Glasgow and Dublin before a double bill in London and a stop off in Birmingham before their Co-op Live debut.
Jarvis Cocker on IG:
"we have more to tell you – but that's another story, you'll hace to wait a little more time to hear that one"
General sale tickets to see Pulp in Manchester at the Co-op Live arena will be available from 9:30am next Friday, 21 February, but pre-sale for the gig will be available to those on the mailing list on Tuesday (18 Feb). Official Co-op members can also access it the following day (Wed, 19 Feb).
The sensational summer date is set for Saturday, 21 June – get ready to grab yours HERE.
Now is probably a good time as any to ask that fateful question: which is the best Pulp song of all time? I think you already know our answer.
Featured Images — Lauren Krohn (press shot supplied)