THE husband and wife team behind a successful technology consultancy have appointed a new chief executive and announced plans for a re-branding.

Durham City-based Waterstons, which was established in 1994 by Mike and Sally Waterston in the basement of their home, now employs more than 80 staff across three offices, which includes a London base.

The appointment of Susan Bell as CEO, will see Sally and Mike remain directors of the company, but give them more time to mentor staff to ensure that the values they built the company on are part of the company’s future.

Waterstons is about to embark on a new marketing campaign, called ‘Five Three One’, which includes a new website and brand identity.

Ms Bell, formerly the firm's operations director, said, “For years our customers have been telling us that we’re one of the region’s best kept business secrets. Following a period of consistent growth we’re now ready to showcase to the wider business community what we excel at."

Sally Waterston said: “Although this marketing strategy is new ground for Waterstons, what hasn’t changed is the ethos on which the company was founded. Our new brand identity very much reflects how we’ve always seen ourselves and been seen by our customers. It gives us an opportunity to get the message out and open up our services to a wider range of businesses who we know can benefit from our approach.”

The Belmont Business Park firm's has a clients such as Newcastle International Airport, Interoute, Durham University Business School and Vopak UK.