Alchemy Media
Alchemy Media is a privately held, 55-year-old street-level out-of-home advertising agency selling wild posting, barricades, billboards, digital panels, and experiential activations across 29+ U.S. markets and international partnerships to Fortune 500 and emerging brands.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1969
- HeadquartersLos Angeles, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Alchemy Media does
Alchemy Media is a privately held street-level out-of-home (OOH) advertising agency operating since 1969 (originally as National Promotions & Advertising) and headquartered in Los Angeles with a New York office. The company sells a portfolio of street-level advertising products — wild posting (both traditional shared showings and dedicated single-advertiser locations), street-level billboards, barricade advertising, the NY Digital Network (75-inch HD screens in Manhattan grocery stores), experiential activations under the Alchemy X sub-brand, painted wall murals, sidewalk graphics, and proprietary Illumicades backlit billboards — across 29+ U.S. designated market areas plus international partnerships in Canada and Europe.
The underlying technology stack is physical rather than software-based: entitled real estate inventory across 4,000+ domestic locations, with site selection guided by 50+ years of accumulated sight-line optimization and validated by Geopath-audited reach and frequency metrics. Alchemy holds the trademark on Illumicades and claims category origination for the Dedicated Locations format. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales with channel relationships to media agencies (Horizon Media, Zenith Media) and real estate partners.
Revenue is generated entirely through advertising sales priced on a project basis, with cost determined by market, campaign term, number of locations, and production volume. Billing cadence includes multi-year contracts. Customers span Fortune 500 enterprise buyers (Disney, Netflix, Coca-Cola, Prada, Spotify, AT&T) across entertainment, fashion, F&B, tech, and automotive, alongside a long tail of mid-market and startup clients (Glossier, Notion, VanMoof, Goodr). Recent strategic emphasis is on digital integration (Mobile Advertising, programmatic on the NY Digital Network) and experiential activations to evolve beyond static formats.
Alchemy Media firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Alchemy Media
- Legal name
- Alchemy Media Holdings, LLC
- Website
- https://alchemymedia.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1969
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Alchemy Media is a privately held, 55-year-old street-level out-of-home advertising agency selling wild posting, barricades, billboards, digital panels, and experiential activations across 29+ U.S. markets and international partnerships to Fortune 500 and emerging brands.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Alchemy Media industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Outdoor Advertising
- NAICS
- Indoor and Outdoor Display Advertising (54185), Media Buying Agencies (541830), Advertising Agencies (541810), Advertising Agencies (54181), Media Representatives (541840), Indoor and Outdoor Display Advertising (541850)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Advertising (7310)
- akta.pro primary industry
- OOH Media Planning, Buying & Inventory Aggregation (BPAFALAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Out-of-Home (OOH) Media Buying (Billboards, Transit, DOOH) (BPAFABAE), OOH Measurement, Attribution & Verification (Footfall, Impressions, Brand Lift) (BPAFALAK), Street Furniture OOH Advertising (Bus Shelters, Kiosks, Benches) (MPAAAKAD), Out-of-Home (OOH) Media Planning & Buying (MPAAABAG)
Keywords
Where Alchemy Media is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Los Angeles
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Alchemy Media business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Wild Posting Advertising: Traditional wild posting where advertisers buy packaged showings of multiple locations across a city, with locations shared among advertisers. Also includes dedicated wild posting sold to single advertisers for specific locations. Pricing is cost-effective and flexible, determined by market, term, number of locations, and posters printed.
- Street-Level Billboards: Dedicated street-level billboards purchased by single advertisers who want maximum exposure at specific locations. These are high-quality, fully entitled street-level media typically sold as packages of multiple dedicated signs within a city.
- Experiential Activations: Interactive campaigns where potential customers can engage with or 'try out' a product or service, including events, projections, three-dimensional ads, and branded experiences. Alchemy handles permitting, customization, technology, staging, load in, and breakdown.
- Digital Urban Panel Network: High-impact digital OOH advertising on 75" HD screens in NYC luxury grocery stores. Offers both direct buys with hands-on campaign planning and programmatic buys with data-driven demographic targeting.
- Barricade Advertising: Premium barricade advertising in Los Angeles covering entire city blocks and intersections. Customizable with various creative formats including montages, horizontal murals, hand-painted street art, interactive experiences, motion-activated sound, and backlit viewing.
- Painted Wall Murals & Hand-Painted Advertising: Striking murals on paper or vinyl and hand-painted ads created by commissioned artists. Elevated form of advertising that generates social media sharing and authentic engagement.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Traditional Wild Posting - Packaged showing of up to 100 distinct locations |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Dedicated Wild Posting - Single advertiser at specific location(s) |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Alchemy Media product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Alchemy Media is a Los Angeles-based street-level out-of-home (OOH) advertising agency founded in 1969. The company plans, places, and manages street-level advertising campaigns for brands and agencies, including wild posting, barricades, dedicated locations, and digital boards. It also produces experiential brand activations to extend campaign reach.
Product overview
Alchemy Media operates as a street-level out-of-home (OOH) advertising platform offering a comprehensive portfolio of advertising products across 29+ designated market areas domestically and internationally. The core offering centers on Wild Posting (traditional and dedicated), Street-Level Billboards, and Barricades, supplemented by digital capabilities through the NY Digital Network, experiential activations (ALCHEMY X with eXpand, eXtension, eXposure), Painted Wall Murals & Hand-Paints, Sidewalk Graphics, Mobile Advertising, Illumicades (backlit technology), Windowscapes, One-Sheets, and Wallscapes. The company provides both traditional shared wild posting showings and dedicated single-advertiser locations, supported by Geopath-audited metrics and turnkey service from strategy through execution.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Alchemy X: Experiential marketing offerings including eXpand (projections and one sheets), eXtension (interactive and sensory ads), and eXposure (premium event spaces and turnkey activations).
- Illumicade™
- Dedicated Locations
Products and services
- Wild Posting Campaigns Large-scale wheat-paste poster campaigns in urban environments, planned and installed by Alchemy Media for brand and agency clients.
- Barricade Advertising Advertising placed on construction-style barricades in high-foot-traffic urban locations, sold as a managed street-level media product.
- Illumicade (Illuminated Street-Level Advertising) Proprietary illuminated advertising structures that extend visibility of street-level campaigns into evening hours.
- Dedicated Advertising Locations Reserved, long-term advertising placements at specific high-value street-level sites, used for sustained brand presence in target markets.
- Digital Out-of-Home Boards Digital street-level advertising boards offering flexible, time-based creative rotation as part of multi-format OOH campaigns.
- Experiential Brand Activations Live, in-person brand experiences and events designed and produced by Alchemy Media to complement and amplify street-level advertising campaigns.
Quantifiable outcome
- Geopath-audited metrics validate campaign reach and frequency performance
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Alchemy Media
Customer profileNamed customers47 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Alchemy Media technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Alchemy Media partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Rapport US AgencyminorCollaboration on Insure Earth climate-action campaign for Earth Day, highlighting need for climate action through OOH advertising.
- Rock the VoteminorNonpartisan organization for which Alchemy provided pro-bono advertising inventory as part of Get Out the Vote initiative in Fall 2020.
- Shepard Fairey's Obey GiantminorArtist collaboration for 2020 Get Out the Vote campaign, combining street art with civic engagement messaging.
- SpriteminorBrand partner for 2020 Get Out the Vote initiative, helping encourage the public to vote through collaborative OOH campaign.
- GeopathcoreGeopath is a not-for-profit agency that audits and measures Alchemy's inventory for reach and frequency. This third-party validation provides credibility for advertising buys and campaign performance metrics.
- City HarvestminorPro-bono partnership for food rescue organization, providing inventory to help circulate messages of hope and support.
- Horizon MediaminorPro-bono partnership with media company supporting public messaging initiatives.
- Alzheimer's AssociationminorPro-bono partnership supporting Making Memories Festival event promotion in Los Angeles.
- We Don't Serve TeensminorFTC-sponsored initiative for which Alchemy provided pro-bono advertising inventory to discourage underage drinking.
- Pride ProjectminorLGBTQ+ advocacy organization partnered with Alchemy for pro-bono public awareness campaigns.
- Ad CouncilminorNonprofit advertising organization partnering with Alchemy for public service campaigns.
- Zenith MediaminorMedia agency partner for municipal public-transportation department messaging initiatives.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Alchemy Media competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Vistar Media: Programmatic DOOH ad server and SSP with extensive US and international OOH network integrations. Comparable to Alchemy as a backend for monetizing digital OOH inventory programmatically, representing both a potential technology partner and a competitive channel for the same advertiser budgets.
- Place Exchange: Programmatic DOOH supply-side platform connecting OOH inventory owners with DSPs. Relevant to Alchemy as a potential integration partner or competitive channel for monetizing digital inventory, since both serve the same brand buyers shifting OOH budgets into programmatic channels.
- Captivate Network: US digital OOH network focused on office-tower elevator and lobby screens. Comparable to Alchemy as a niche DOOH media owner operating digital screens in high-traffic urban environments, though Captivate's inventory is captive to office buildings rather than street-level.
- Firefly: US-based digital OOH network placing illuminated screens on taxis and rideshare vehicles. Comparable to Alchemy as a tech-enabled, urban-focused OOH format competing for the same street-level share of wallet, but differentiated by vehicle-mounted delivery vs. fixed-site street inventory.
- Adomni: Programmatic DOOH marketplace enabling advertisers to buy digital billboards and screens across fragmented networks in real time. Comparable to Alchemy on the programmatic DOOH growth axis (Alchemy's NY Digital Network also supports programmatic buys) but competes for the same pool of OOH dollars with a software-led model.
Broad incumbents
- Lamar Advertising Company: One of the largest US outdoor advertising operators (billboards, transit, airport), with a public market cap in the multi-billion range. Comparable to Alchemy as a broad OOH incumbent, though Lamar's focus is highway/billboard rather than street-level, and it operates at much greater scale.
- JCDecaux: World leader in street furniture OOH (bus shelters, kiosks, benches) and a major municipal concession holder. Most comparable to Alchemy on the 'street-level urban furniture' axis, though JCDecaux is far larger, publicly traded, and dominates European and Latin American markets.
- Clear Channel Outdoor: Global OOH incumbent (billboards, street furniture, transit, airport) spun out of iHeartMedia. Comparable as a broad OOH media seller with similar agency relationships and a DOOH roadmap, but at significantly greater scale and geographic breadth than Alchemy.
- Outfront Media: Public US OOH company with billboards, transit, and a growing digital footprint. Overlaps with Alchemy on inventory aggregation, media sales and DOOH expansion, though Outfront skews toward transit and traditional billboards vs. Alchemy's street-level, wild-posting core.
- Stroer SE & Co. KGaA: Major German OOH operator focused on street-level digital and analog displays in urban environments. Comparable to Alchemy on hyperlocal street-level media and DOOH emphasis, though Stroer is publicly listed and concentrated in German-speaking markets.
Market position
Strengths3 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Alchemy Media social profiles
Digital presenceAlchemy Media financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Alchemy Media leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Alchemy Media funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Alchemy Media M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Alchemy Media
What does Alchemy Media do?
Alchemy Media is a Los Angeles-based street-level out-of-home (OOH) advertising agency founded in 1969. The company plans, places, and manages street-level advertising campaigns for brands and agencies, including wild posting, barricades, dedicated locations, and digital boards. It also produces experiential brand activations to extend campaign reach.
Is Alchemy Media a public or private company?
Alchemy Media is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Alchemy Media founded?
Alchemy Media was founded in 1969. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Alchemy Media based?
Alchemy Media is headquartered in Los Angeles, United States, in the North America region.
How does Alchemy Media make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Wild Posting Advertising is the primary driver. The others are street-Level Billboards, experiential Activations, digital Urban Panel Network, barricade Advertising and painted Wall Murals & Hand-Painted Advertising.
Who are Alchemy Media's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Vistar Media, Place Exchange, Captivate Network, Firefly and Adomni. Broad incumbents are Lamar Advertising Company, JCDecaux, Clear Channel Outdoor, Outfront Media and Stroer SE & Co. KGaA.
Does Alchemy Media have an API?
No public API is recorded for Alchemy Media.
What industry is Alchemy Media in?
Alchemy Media's product category is Outdoor Advertising. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFALAJ, OOH Media Planning, Buying & Inventory Aggregation, with a secondary code of BPAFABAE, Out-of-Home (OOH) Media Buying (Billboards, Transit, DOOH). Its NAICS code is 54185 and its SIC code is 7311.