The Shipyard

What The Shipyard does

The Shipyard is a full-service independent marketing and communications agency headquartered in Columbus, Ohio with a secondary West Coast headquarters in San Diego, California. Founded in 2002, the agency operates across 10 U.S. offices with approximately 400 professionals serving 245 active clients in 35 states. Service lines span brand strategy and identity, creative and campaign development, digital experience and innovation (including Web3 and AI integration), media planning and buying, public relations, and reputation management, delivered through The Shipyard Collective operating model that unifies The Shipyard core brand with acquired entities Fahlgren Mortine (PR, acquired May 2024), TURNER (travel/tourism PR), and TinyWins (digital feelings studio, acquired May 2025).

Revenue is generated primarily through enterprise B2B client retainers and project fees across verticals including travel and tourism (Visit California, San Diego Tourism Authority), consumer packaged goods (In-N-Out Burger, Marzetti, Weleda), technology and innovation (Joby Aviation, Swisslog, Veloz), government and public interest (Ohio Lottery, Save Our Water, US Air Force), and personal brands (Tony Robbins, San Francisco Ballet). Combined entity billings stand at $350 million, with pricing undisclosed but structured around multi-year retainer arrangements and project scopes. Go-to-market is direct enterprise sales with formal competitive reviews, supplemented by thought leadership through an annual Engineering Brand Love Summit, SXSW participation, and a content marketing program of 81+ insights articles.

The agency's technology stack integrates paid, earned, and owned media capabilities with proprietary tools including the patent-pending Generative Engine Optimization platform accessed through the FancyAI strategic investment (February 2026), the PULSE measurement platform for marketing effectiveness, and a 1,200+ behavioral marker analytics practice. The Shipyard holds SOC 2 Type 2 certification, has raised a $21.5M follow-on investment from Alaris Equity Partners as part of an $80M convertible debenture offering, and is recognized as an Adweek Fastest Growing Agency, two-time PRSA Best Mid-sized Agency, and Campaign World's Top Independent Agency.

Name

The Shipyard

Legal name

The Shipyard, LLC

Website

https://theshipyard.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Shipyard is a full-service independent marketing and communications agency with 400 professionals across 10 U.S. offices, serving 245 enterprise clients in CPG, tourism, technology, and government through an integrated PR, creative, media, and digital model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Marketing Services Retainers and Project Fees: Full-service agency providing integrated marketing services including brand strategy, creative development, media buying, public relations, and digital experience. Revenue generated through client retainers and project-based engagements across 245 active clients in 35 states.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Shipyard is a full-service independent marketing and communications agency that delivers brand strategy, creative campaign development, media planning and buying, digital experience, and public relations through an integrated, non-siloed operating model called "Engineering Brand Love." The agency serves 245 enterprise and government clients across 35 states through retainers and project-based engagements, and in 2026 became the first agency to offer patented Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) technology directly to clients via its strategic investment in FancyAI.

Product overview

The Shipyard is a full-service independent marketing and communications agency that operates primarily as a services firm. Its core offering is The Shipyard brand itself, delivering brand strategy, creative and campaign development, digital experience and innovation, media and performance marketing, and public relations through an integrated, non-siloed model. The agency extends its capabilities through The Shipyard Collective operating model, which unifies three agency brands — The Shipyard (core), Fahlgren Mortine (PR and communications), and TinyWins (digital feelings studio) — under one cohesive structure. In February 2026, The Shipyard made a strategic investment in FancyAI, a Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) platform with patent-pending technology, becoming the first agency to bring GEO technology directly to clients to help brands improve visibility in AI-powered discovery environments. The overall portfolio is organized around the agency's 'Engineering Brand Love' philosophy, which integrates paid, earned, and owned media channels into a unified force multiplier model.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Shipyard (Full-Service Marketing & Communications Agency) Full-service independent marketing and communications agency that engineers brand love through unified paid, earned, and owned media channels. Delivers brand strategy, creative campaigns, media planning and buying, digital experience, and PR services for enterprise and government clients across multiple offices nationwide.
• Fahlgren Mortine (Public Relations) Top-20 U.S. public relations firm and two-time PRSA Silver Anvil Agency of the Year, retained as an acquired brand within The Shipyard Collective. Provides integrated communications strategy, research and insights, content development, media and influencer relations, corporate communications, reputation management, and crisis communications.
• TinyWins (Digital Feelings Studio) Global digital feelings studio specializing in emotionally intelligent, tech-forward brand building. Provides strategy, creative, design, AI, Web3, app development, and platform innovation capabilities. Co-founded by Lillian Marsh and Matty Ayers and operating within The Shipyard Collective.
• FancyAI Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Technology Patent-pending Generative Engine Optimization platform that helps brands understand, influence, and improve how they are discovered and recommended by AI-powered search and recommendation systems. Offered directly to clients by The Shipyard as the first agency to bring patented GEO technology to market.

Quantifiable outcome

• 400% sales growth for In-N-Out Burger over 3 years
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability11 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• FancyAIcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 February 2026Strategic investment in FancyAI, a Generative Engine Optimization platform with patent-pending technology. The Shipyard became the first agency to bring patented GEO technology to clients, enabling brands to strengthen visibility and credibility across AI-powered discovery environments. The technology is being deployed with select clients and customized to meet real-world client needs.

Scale indicators18 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Wieden+Kennedy: Portland-based iconic independent creative agency and one of the largest independent agencies globally (~1,500+ employees). Overlaps significantly on creative reputation and enterprise brand work, but operates at materially greater scale than The Shipyard.
• McCann Worldgroup: IPG-owned global advertising network offering brand strategy, creative, media, PR, and digital at massive global scale. Competes for the same enterprise AOR work as The Shipyard but with global footprint and far larger resource base.
• Digitas: Publicis-owned digital marketing network offering integrated creative, media, data, and technology services. Represents the kind of global, full-service holding-company competitor that The Shipyard's Collective model is partly designed to compete against.

Direct peers

• 72andSunny: Los Angeles-based independent creative agency known for brand-building work with consumer and entertainment clients. Similar size tier and integrated creative+media+digital offering; both agencies pursue enterprise brand AOR work.
• The Martin Agency: Richmond, VA-based independent creative agency of comparable size (~500-700 people) with a similar integrated offering across brand strategy, creative, media, and digital. Frequently competes for the same enterprise AOR mandates as The Shipyard.
• Mother Design: NYC-based independent creative agency within the Mother network, focused on brand strategy and design. Similar integrated, silo-free operating philosophy and comparable client caliber.
• Anomaly: Independent creative agency with offices in NYC, LA, London, Shanghai, and Toronto, known for non-traditional operating model that integrates strategy, creative, and media. Similar philosophy of breaking down agency silos that underpins The Shipyard Collective model.
• GSD&M: Austin, TX-based independent agency owned by Omnicom, with similar integrated creative, media, and digital capabilities. Comparable mid-large agency competing for similar enterprise brand work, especially in CPG and consumer categories.
• RPA: Santa Monica-based independent full-service agency with strong CPG and automotive client roster. Comparable size, similar integrated advertising/creative/media capabilities, and similar enterprise AOR positioning.
• R/GA: Independent digital agency (formerly owned by IPG, now independent under new ownership) with strong technology, design, and innovation capabilities. Directly comparable to The Shipyard's digital experience and AI-driven innovation positioning post-TinyWins.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@theshipyardcrew
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheShipyardCrew
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-shipyard-llc
• Instagraminstagram.com/theshipyard
• Xx.com/TheShipyardCrew

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A7 records

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Shipyard