The board of product design consultancy PDD has completed a management buyout of the company.
Founder Paul Pankhurst is standing down as chairman of the consultancy but will remain a non-executive director and minority shareholder.
Control of PDD now passes to board members Alun Wilcox, Graham Lacy, Jamie Buckley, Karsten Fischer, Tim Court and Vassilios Kanellopoulos.
"This is an exciting opportunity for the board to capitalise on three decades of successful product and service innovation, helping clients to translate business challenges into commercial successes," said Karsten Fischer, Managing director of PDD.
"PDD has long been at the forefront of innovation," he added.
"Our experienced team will build on the proven end-to-end skills, knowledge and relationships needed to develop products and services for our clients.
It is the successful integration of the diverse activities - performed by our team of talented planners, researchers, designers, engineers and model-makers - which sets PDD apart."