Mark Owens, a dad from Huyton, launched Svara Radio with Josh Wilson in 2021 from a small studio on Bridgewater Street in the Baltic Triangle. The station has since become one of the best-known alternative voices on Liverpool's airwaves, and Mark now runs it on his own.
Beyond the radio waves, Svara has expanded through regular brand partnerships and events at city centre venues including the Jacaranda and the Buyer's Club.
An alternative to commercial radio
Mark told the ECHO: “Svara started because we saw that something like this was needed in the city, because the commercial radio stations were basically just playing the same music over all their platforms. We didn't see anywhere that was giving a platform to people around us.
“With us being grassroots, whatever you see on Svara is organic.”
Local DJs on the rise
While new bands and musicians are emerging across Liverpool all the time, Svara has become the go-to station for the city's up-and-coming DJs. Mark said the airtime has brought tangible rewards.
He said: “DJs who we've had on Svara have gone from just being local DJs to going on to work at Glastonbury. We're also taking some DJs down to We Out Here Fest, so we're doing some programming down there with them and then when brands like New Balance, Adidas, On Running and Carhartt have come to the city, we've put forward a lot of DJs to work with them.”
A shift to a traditional format
Unlike commercial stations, Svara spent its first five years with a DJ-led format rather than a typical playlist model. Later this year, the station plans to switch to a more traditional full day-to-night schedule.
Mark said: “When we started we had the idea of having regular hosts every day, but the way things turned out, we were doing more DJ mixes than radio sets. But we're really putting energy now into becoming a traditional radio station and a voice for Liverpool. We will have regular shows where people can tune in all throughout the day and night.”
Ambitions for the future
Although Svara is still relatively young, Mark hopes it can reach the level of independent stations currently thriving in London. He said: “It would mean a lot to be recognised alongside those stations, as a business owner.
“I just hope that we can keep growing, we can keep bringing more people together, and we can be an established voice for the city, that's controlled by a Scouser.”
