Why — And How — IG North America Brought the tastylive and tastytrade Brands Under One Roof

When Katie McGarrigle sauntered through the halls of 1330 W. Fulton St. in Chicago this past March, she could hardly believe what she was seeing. 

It was tastylive’s new studio, outfitted with the latest camera and audio equipment, video streaming technology and a visage conjured by the mind of one of the Windy City’s most reputable theater set designers. In other words: It was the physical manifestation of progress for the financial news network, signaling the start of a more scalable, cohesive future. 

In addition to being director of marketing integration at the company, McGarrigle is also a show host on tastylive, where she educates viewers on market concepts and trading strategies and dissects market activity live on air. The opening of the new studio was especially exciting for her, as it reflected the company’s significant growth since she joined in 2012. 

“It’s incredible to see how far we’ve come and how much the new, state-of-the-art technology will start to enhance the show even more,” McGarrigle said. 

With the Fulton Street location, IG North America — which operates tastylive and the trading platform provider tastytrade — is housing these two brands under one roof for the first time in history, featuring both a new studio and a fresh office space. McGarrigle believes this enables the company to “surround” its customers and audience with everything they need to take on the financial markets — whether that be with technology, content or the help of its support teams. 

Executive Producer and Director of Programming Beth Filoramo also considers the opening of the new studio and office space to be a true milestone; one that feels worlds away from where tastytrade was 13 years ago, when she joined the company.

“It’s a testament to the hard work of all our team members on the network, as we’ve always stayed true to our mission of delivering the best financial content in the industry,” she said.

As tastytrade’s employees relish the opening of its new studio and office space, they aren’t simply basking in the glow of cutting-edge technology. For Director of Broadcasting Technology and Operations Garrett Roodbergen, this latest phase in the company’s growth journey is a precursor of even greater changes to come. 

“The new space ushers in a new era of capabilities for tastytrade, where the completion of the physical studio is just the beginning,” he said. “I look forward to pushing past what we thought was possible with our old analog studio and embracing the future and flexibility of the new space.”

Perfecting the ‘Cherry Pie’

Filoramo considers the development of the new tastylive studios to be “the final piece of the cherry pie.” 

This metaphor, a nod to the company’s cherry-adorned logo, reflects how the company’s new space completes a bigger picture that has been in formation for years. And according to Filoramo, this picture illustrates captivating, rebranded elements that enhance how information is presented on air. 

“We now have the ability to enhance an already impressive presentation of information with the technical expertise of our crew, feedback from talent and the grand vision of our design team,” she said. “It’s something I’m deeply proud of.” 

Naturally, an achievement of this caliber required collaboration across the board. Filoramo shared that the company’s live operations technicians juggled months of training on new software and equipment with continuing to run live shows, while on-air content creators played an active role in set design. 

But aside from employees, there was another pivotal component behind tastytrade’s new studio: the technology. According to Roodbergen, tastylive’s new technological backbone allows for team members to automate simple tasks, reducing the amount of manual work and giving them greater time to craft new content ideas and launch creative initiatives. 

Yet the benefits of powerful technology don’t stop there. Roodbergen shared that this new technical foundation also makes it easier for the company to share its insights on a much wider scale. 

“The technology driving the new studio allows for easy global scalability, allowing us to branch out to any part of the world and connect with talent or hand off control entirely to another team,” he explained. “All of this will help us bring the best content in the most effective way to our end viewer.”

While tastylive has its sights set on international influence, the network has also been bolstering its fan base in the United States by taking its show on the road in cities across the country. 

For McGarrigle, having the chance to mobilize her work has been an unforgettable experience. Not only has it allowed her to connect with audiences on a deeper level, but it sets the company apart from other organizations in its industry. 

“It’s rare to have the opportunity to connect with like-minded people in an organic, non-digital setting,” she said. “Doing these shows differentiates us from other traditional financial media and brokerage firms. It solidifies our brand pillars of being trader-first and customer-obsessed, and people appreciate that we try to talk about finance and trading in an approachable way.”

‘Nothing Will Hold Us Back’

Having a fresh studio and office space has opened many new doors — both literally and figuratively. 

With everyone under the same roof, Filoramo explained, team members across tastytrade and tastylive have greater chances to gather each other’s expertise, making it easier to churn out timely blogs, well-researched articles, well-designed set pieces and massive marketing campaigns. 

“It’s very unique that we have the ability to write, produce, film, edit, design graphics and deliver content for any platform that exists — all in house,” he said. “The team feels proud of the product we have built, and at the end of the day, continues to deliver the best financial content to our audiences.”

For McGarrigle, the new studio and office space is more than a reflection of how easily the company coordinates major initiatives that will help the business scale. Rather, it embodies the ethos that has defined tastytrade and tastylive since its inception.

“We have never strayed from our mission of serving the customer, because at the end of the day, it’s all for them,” McGarrigle said. “I’m really proud of our people for that.”

“We have never strayed from our mission of serving the customer, because at the end of the day, it’s all for them.”

As tastytrade and tastylive leverage all of the benefits of its new workplace, employees are gearing up for a promising future filled with powerful technology, widespread impact and high-quality content. And in doing so, Roodbergen shared, they get to unlock opportunities for both themselves — and traders across the globe. 

“We have always been a brand that pushes the envelope, and it’s important that we continue to do so,” he said. “Nothing will hold us back.”