Cosmic celebrates 20 years in tech

ONE of south west’s leading digital and IT companies celebrated its 20th anniversary in style this week.

Cosmic specialises in website development, training, business consultancy and tech support, and was founded as a social enterprise in 1996, just five years after the birth of the World Wide Web.

Clients, business leaders, charity and education representatives, and members of staff celebrated the achievement, with a day of celebration – and learning.

Julie Hawker, joint CEO of Cosmic, said: ‘Since its launch Cosmic has worked with thousands of organisations, schools, and charities across the region to make the most out of digital technologies, working in partnership to improve how people use the internet and computers in the workplace, in communities and in their homes.’

The company is currently delivering a ground-breaking Digital Leadership programme which aims to create a new generation of ‘digital leaders’.

The event began with a welcome from Cosmic’s joint CEOs Julie Hawker and Kate Doodson, Chairman Mark Cotton, and the open day sponsors Yarlington Housing.

Mark Cotton, chairman of Cosmic, said: ‘It has been fantastic to see so many friends of Cosmic here, both old and new friends, but, importantly, all friends of this fantastic organisation which does wonderful things in the local area, particularly in terms of helping people to tackle digital exclusion. We look forward to the next 20 years.’

There were plenty of opportunities for people to get involved, as the staff at Cosmic hosted a series of insightful workshops, offering their expertise on all things digital, including website trends, cyber and security data and digital productivity. There was also an interactive gadget show and a display of creative projects completed by the staff team to mark the occasion.

A raffle and prize draw were also held to raise money for Cosmic’s charity of the year, Headway Devon.

Holly Keatings, of Headway Devon, said: ‘We are very pleased to have been here celebrating Cosmic’s 20th anniversary. It was also our 20th anniversary this year and we are lucky enough to have worked with Cosmic for much of this time and seen both of our organisations flourish.’