Sunderland father and daughter duo celebrate business expansion
A father and daughter duo is celebrating the expansion of its podcast-focused TV facility nearly one year after its foundation.
Howell Studios was set up by Chris and Issy Howell in December 2025.
In just nine months, Chris and Issy, who run the podcast Looks Like We Made it, expanded, moving into its second and largest office at the North East BIC, in Sunderland, to keep up with demand.
Designed to solve the daily struggles of content creation faced by many businesses, the studio combines live vision mixing with broadcast-grade technology, identical to systems used by the BBC, Sky and ITV.
The setup allows business owners to step into an immersive, custom-branded space and produce professional videos, podcasts and digital content efficiently.
Issy, director of Howell Studios, said: “The bigger studio space isn’t just opening doors for us, it’s also opening doors for industries that have never considered doing podcasts or videos before, like lawyers, business coaches, HR professionals and consultants.
"The opportunity wasn’t there before but it is now.”
By focusing on efficiency and affordable rates, Howell Studios allows clients to batch-produce a full quarter’s worth of podcasts, social media content or online training courses in a single visit.
Reflecting on their growth, Chris, director of Howell Studios, said: “The BIC has given us the ability to test the waters and know we are supported as we scale.
"It genuinely feels like a community here.
"Over the next 12 months, our goal is steady and sustainable growth, helping clients make studio content a seamless, recurring part of their yearly strategy.”
Doreen Howard, centre manager at the North East BIC, said: “Watching Howell Studios expand into a bigger space just nine months after launching the region’s first podcast-focused TV studio is fantastic.
"Chris and Issy bring incredible energy to our community and their growth is a testament to how in-demand their services are.
"They’ve gone from strength to strength and we look forward to supporting their journey as they continue to grow.”
Howell Studios’ sister company, Howell Media, relocated to the BIC 18 months ago, expanding across multiple spaces as they grew.