Our 50 Year History

The business was started 8/11/1972 by Geoffrey ‘Thomas’ Dollin and Phillip ‘Marsden’ Morehead, the name Thomas Marsden ...’you guessed it’ comes from a combination of their middle names. Started in converted chicken shed behind Penrith Art Printing Works Gipps Street St Marys.

The first TMA invoice was to the new Penrith Plaza Shopping Centre for preparing advertisements for the Penrith Press newspaper.

Thomas Marsden Advertising Services (Partnership) business name was registered 10/1/1973.

After a short time, work was flowing in, so the first staff member Valerie was employed to do the typing.

A second iteration of the Thomas Marsden Advertising Services logo and branding.

After about twelve months staff were needed to handle the workload, so in November 1974 the decision was made to move into a ‘real’ office at 204 Queen Street St Marys. What luxury... carpet and air conditioning... even a phone.

Penrith P Panther
The original Penrith Panthers mascot, and first NRL mascot, was created and designed by Phil Morehead, sponsored by Max Wright Motors.

Way back in 1977, the latest thing on the design studio scene was the Compugraphic Editwriter 7500 photo typesetter, that combined a keyboard with a photo unit. We had a limited range of about 10 type fonts, each on a long strip of film that wrapped around a drum, letters were light exposed to photo paper......a print out ready for ‘paste-up’. .....(stuck on to past-board with rubber solution or ‘glued’ on with hot wax from a waxing machine.

Thomas Marsden Advertising Pty Ltd 5/6/1980
Thomas Marsden Advertising became a Company in 1980, with Geoff’s wife Bronwyn and Phil’s wife Mavis as joint directors.

With a few larger clients coming on board, there were requests to book advertisements in various media, so the challenge was to apply to become an Accredited Advertising Agency.....”Out at St Marys, you must be mad, it will never get off the ground” was the comment. However, after much scrutiny, National Accreditation with the Media Council of Australia was granted.....maybe they had a soft spot for the ‘battlers from the chicken shed’.

The huge Agfa Repromaster Bromide Camera. Used for converting photographs and finished artwork for use in Newspaper and Print media. These were phased out when we moved in 1999.

By 1989 the business had outgrown twice the office space, and a big move was made to Penrith to bigger, brand new offices on the 1st Floor of 450 High Street Penrith.

Along with the move into larger premises in Penrith, a revised logo was also completed.

Phil & Geoff 'haming it up' in costume promoting their return to Penrith in 1989

Soon came the advent of computers into graphic design, they were bulky, expensive pieces of equipment with very limited output, but that was the start of rapid changes in the way we did things. The cost to equip the studio with computer equipment was around $250,000.

With colour printing capabilities becoming more readily available and affordable, a revised vibrant and geometric version of the brand was created, including printing division.

TMA UPDATE Newsletter showing early use of photoshop imagery.

Production of advertising material for Blue Mountains Tourism.

May 1999 – 20 Soper Place Penrith
Another move... purchased in 1999, 20 Belmore Street, Penrith a single level office fronting onto Soper Place carpark.

Phil’s son Nathan and Geoff’s daughter Kylie and son Shamus joined the team as graphic artists.

Over 25 years promoting Clarendon Homes... from their very beginning.

The unique computer workstation layout at Soper Place.

2006 saw an update of logo and branding to simply Thomas Marsden wording and bold red primary colour.

In 2007, one of the founders, Phillip Morehead retired and moved to the South Coast. Geoff Dollin continued on with his son Shamus guiding the business direction into the rapidly changing world of internet, web, online and mobile marketing.

Geoff and Shamus at Blue Mountains Chamber of Commerce function.

The team at Soper Place.

TMA was also heavily involved in Panthers marketing for many years.

Moving to a new premises prompted a rethink of the brand look and this update inlcuded a fresh and colourful theme.

15/9/2009 – Suite 6/86 Henry Street Penrith

Shamus, Kylie, Bronwyn and Geoff... and the team at Henry Street.

Self promotion – Pyramid mailer with fortune cookies... and company Mini adorned with colour logo theme.

At a Penrith Chamber of Commerce business breakfast in 2012 Geoff presented a brief history of the business and outlined the dramatic changes that have come about in the advertising industry over the past 40 years.

On 10 August 2017 we made a move into dedicated offices within the Wotso Workspace, 95b Station Street Penrith. The managed workspace facility was a fresh and attractive solution to past options of leased or owned premises.

Like in the past we refreshed our logo when moving offices and this final version we created an abstract TM symbol and simplified branding.

Google Partner status achieved.

Our longest running client... 50 years with Paal Kit Homes.

Celebrating 50 years.