Rebuild

What Rebuild does

Rebuild was a Detroit-based independent advertising and creative-strategy agency founded in 2012 by Steve DeAngelis and Josh Gershonowicz. The firm operated from Detroit's Milwaukee Junction neighborhood and was built around a stated thesis that middle-market brands were underserved by both boutique shops and large holding-company-owned agencies. Its core offering centered on creative strategy, brand transformation, and digital expertise delivered as omnichannel brand experiences across multiple touchpoints, with no proprietary software product, platform, or technology IP disclosed.

The client base spanned four named verticals — healthcare, travel & tourism, food & beverage, and economic development — served via a professional-services, project-based engagement model with custom scopes. No public pricing, customer logos, revenue figures, funding history, or institutional ownership structure were disclosed; the firm operated as a privately held, founder-led independent agency for its entire pre-acquisition life.

On January 14, 2025, Hart — a 60-year-old, Toledo-headquartered independent brand transformation agency — acquired Rebuild, integrating its team and Detroit office into Hart's footprint. The combination brought Hart to four locations (Toledo, Columbus, Washington D.C., and Detroit) and nearly 100 professionals, with Rebuild's creative-strategy and digital capabilities positioned as additive to Hart's full-service independent communications offering. Post-acquisition, Rebuild operates as part of Hart and is no longer an independent entity.

Name

Rebuild

Legal name

Rebuild

Website

https://rebuild.group

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rebuild was a Detroit-based independent creative-strategy and digital agency serving middle-market brands across healthcare, travel & tourism, food & beverage, and economic development verticals, acquired by Hart in January 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advertising & Marketing Services

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Rebrand & Brand Refresh Programs (MPAAAEAJ)

Keywords

• Creative strategy services
• Brand transformation
• Omnichannel marketing
• Digital advertising agency
• Independent agency services

Headquarters

HQ city

Detroit

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Agency Services Revenue: Rebuild generates revenue through professional agency services including creative strategy, digital marketing, and brand transformation services for mid-market clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Core offering

Rebuild was a Detroit-based independent creative strategy agency that provided brand transformation, digital strategy, and omnichannel brand experience services to middle-market clients. The agency specialized in developing connective brand campaigns across healthcare, travel and tourism, food and beverage, and economic development verticals, operating as a full-service creative partner rather than a software or product vendor.

Product overview

Rebuild was a Detroit-based independent advertising and creative strategy agency, founded in 2012 by Steve DeAngelis and Josh Gershonowicz. The company operated as a full-service creative agency specializing in digital strategy and omnichannel brand experiences. Key industry verticals included healthcare, travel and tourism, food and beverage, and economic development. Rebuild was acquired by Hart in January 2025. Rebuild's core offerings centered on creative strategy, brand transformation, and digital expertise to deliver omnichannel experiences. No standalone product portfolio was identified; Rebuild operated as a services-based agency rather than a software product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Creative Strategy and Brand Transformation Services
• Digital Strategy and Omnichannel Brand Experience Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Hart expanded to four locations with nearly 100 professionals following the acquisition

Named customers4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Publicis Groupe: Global advertising holding company whose Detroit-area agencies (including Leo Burnett Detroit) compete directly with Rebuild for mid-market brand transformation engagements. Sets the structural alternative to Rebuild's independent model.
• WPP: Global advertising holding company with significant Detroit presence (formerly Team Detroit, now VML). Competes with Rebuild for mid-market and enterprise brand transformation work, and defines the larger-scale incumbent alternative to Rebuild's independent offering.
• Omnicom Group: Global holding company with multiple agency networks (DDB, BBDO, TBWA, Goodby Silverstein) operating in Detroit and the Midwest. Represents the holding-company scale and full-service breadth that Rebuild's independent model is positioned against.
• Leo Burnett: Global creative agency network under Publicis Groupe with a Detroit office. Competes with Rebuild in the same Detroit market for similar mid-market brand work, but as part of a much larger holding-company portfolio.

Direct peers

• Anomaly: Independent creative agency with a brand-strategy and brand-transformation core, working with mid-market and challenger brands. Highly comparable on independent model and emphasis on connective, omnichannel campaign work.
• Droga5: Independent (now Accenture Song-affiliated) creative agency renowned for brand strategy and transformation work. Comparable to Rebuild on the centrality of creative strategy and omnichannel brand experience, though larger in scale.
• Wieden+Kennedy: Portland-headquartered independent creative agency known for brand strategy and campaign-led work for major brands. Comparable to Rebuild in its independent full-service positioning and emphasis on creative strategy as the core offering.
• Mother: London- and New York-based independent creative agency built around brand strategy and connective campaigns. Shares Rebuild's independent-only positioning and creative-strategy-first value proposition.
• 72andSunny: Independent creative agency with deep omnichannel and brand-experience capabilities for mid-market and large brands. Directly comparable to Rebuild on independent model, omnichannel emphasis, and brand-transformation remit.
• Doner: Detroit-based independent agency with a long-standing reputation for full-service brand work across consumer and mid-market clients. The closest geographic and structural peer to Rebuild, operating from the same city with a similar independent full-service model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rebuildgrp
• Xx.com/RebuildAgency
• Facebookfacebook.com/RebuildGRP

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Rebuild