What Hoffman York does

Hoffman York is a full-service, independently owned advertising and marketing agency founded around 1930 by Harry Hoffman and Wilford York during the Great Depression and headquartered at 200 N Water St in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The agency operates with 101-250 employees and organizes its offering around six core service disciplines: Consumer Insights and Experience, Branding/Creative/Content, PR and Social Communications, Media Strategy and Investment, Website Design and Development, and CRM/Email Marketing, supplemented by a specialized Destinations practice for tourism clients and a free consulting program, HY Brand Camp, that functions as a top-of-funnel conversion mechanism. Notable enterprise and government clients include Wahl Grooming, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, Montana Office of Tourism, Yamaha Outboards, Napoleon Grills, Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, Milwaukee Downtown, and Oconomowoc, with several relationships spanning decades.

The agency's delivery stack spans agile sprint methodology, user-centric design, augmented-reality experiential work (ghost-sign restoration), and programmatic/paid-media execution via Kantar/Media Radar, MRI/Simmons, Flashtalking, Meta Ads, Google Ads, LinkedIn, TikTok, and The Trade Desk, with CRM/email automation on Salesforce Marketing Cloud. HY belongs to AMIN, a worldwide network of 50 independent agencies that supports cross-border campaign execution, and has accumulated industry recognition including multiple PRSA Paragon Awards, Shorty Awards (including a Silver and Impact), a One Show Merit, a Platinum MarCom, an HSMAI Adrian Award, and a repeat Top 5 ranking in Agency Spotter's 2024 Top Branding Agencies report.

Revenue is generated through professional-services fees on custom, multi-year engagements (no public pricing). The segmentation strategy is hybrid: large enterprise brands and challenger brands represent the primary base, while government/tourism organizations (state tourism offices, city DMOs, economic development bodies) and community businesses/non-profits represent secondary segments accessed via thought-leadership content, industry awards, AMIN network channels, and the HY Brand Camp funnel. Ownership has remained independent for nearly a century with no evidence of private equity or institutional backing; current leadership comprises CEO Angie Buchanan (also Director of Client Service) and President Emily Dold.

Name

Hoffman York

Legal name

Hoffman York

Website

https://hoffmanyork.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hoffman York is an independent, Milwaukee-based full-service advertising agency founded in 1930, offering integrated marketing across insights, branding, PR, media, web development, and CRM. It serves enterprise brands, challenger brands, and government/tourism organizations, anchored by multi-decade client relationships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advertising Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (54181), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Brand Guidelines, Governance & Brand Management (BPAFAEAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local & Location-Based Performance Advertising (Local Search/Maps, Geo-targeting) (BPAFACAL)

Keywords

• Integrated marketing services
• Media planning buying
• Brand strategy
• Public relations
• Digital advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Milwaukee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Advertising and Marketing Services: Full-service agency providing integrated marketing services including consumer insights, branding creative and content, PR and social communications, media strategy and investment, website design and development, and CRM and email marketing. Revenue generated through professional service fees for strategic consulting, creative development, media planning and buying, and digital services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hoffman York is a full-service independent advertising agency providing integrated marketing services organized around six core disciplines: Consumer Insights and Experience, Branding/Creative/Content, PR and Social Communications, Media Strategy and Investment, Website Design and Development, and CRM/Email Marketing. The agency serves enterprise brands, challenger brands, and government/tourism organizations with data-driven, multi-channel campaigns, additionally offering HY Brand Camp free consulting sessions and specialized destination marketing services.

Product overview

Hoffman York is a full-service advertising agency offering integrated marketing services organized around six core disciplines: Consumer Insights and Experience, Branding/Creative/Content, PR and Social Communications, Media Strategy and Investment, Website Design and Development, and CRM/Email Marketing. The agency specializes in destination/tourism marketing and serves a diverse mix of brands from Fortune 200 companies to challenger brands. Notable clients include Montana Office of Tourism, Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, Wahl Grooming, Yamaha Outboards, Napoleon Grills, and Outer Banks Visitors Bureau. The agency also offers HY Brand Camp, a free consulting program for community businesses and established brands seeking expert marketing guidance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HY Brand Camp: A free, no-strings-attached working session with HY marketing experts to solve brand, marketing or business challenges.

Products and services

• Consumer Insights and Experience

Quantifiable outcome

• 860 million impressions for Montana Tourism PR campaign
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Advertising & Marketing Independent Network (AMIN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHoffman York is part of AMIN, a worldwide network of 50 like-minded independent agencies. The partnership enables collaboration, sharing of best practices, and development of cutting-edge global marketing campaigns for clients requiring international reach.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Cramer-Krasselt: Historic Milwaukee/Chicago-headquartered creative agency now part of Deloitte Digital, providing brand, advertising, digital and CRM services; comparable in legacy and geography, but operates at significantly greater scale and with broader portfolio resources.
• Dentsu Creative Americas: Global network-owned creative and media agency offering integrated advertising, brand, CX and PR services across consumer and tourism verticals; comparable in service breadth but vastly larger in scale, talent base and international reach.

Direct peers

• Barkley: Independently owned, Kansas City-headquartered full-service agency offering brand strategy, creative, media, PR and digital services; comparable as a privately held, mid-sized independent with similar integrated service mix and enterprise client base.
• Laughlin Constable: Milwaukee/Chicago-based independent agency providing brand, digital, media and CRM services; directly comparable to Hoffman York as a long-standing Midwest independent with similar service breadth and mid-market/enterprise client mix.
• Butler/Till: Independently owned media and marketing services agency with offices in Rochester NY and Milwaukee; comparable in independent status, Midwest presence, and integrated media/creative offering targeting enterprise and challenger brands.
• Doner Company: Independently owned full-service agency headquartered in Detroit/Southfield with brand, creative, media and digital capabilities; directly comparable as a privately held, mid-sized integrated agency serving enterprise consumer brands.
• Carmichael Lynch: Minneapolis-based independent, full-service creative agency offering brand, advertising, PR, digital and social work for enterprise brands; comparable as a privately held, award-winning Midwest independent with a similar integrated offering.
• Team One: Independent, full-service agency with premium brand-building, media, digital and content capabilities serving enterprise clients; comparable as a privately held agency of similar size competing for similar integrated mandates.
• BVK: Milwaukee-headquartered independent, full-service marketing agency offering brand strategy, creative, media, digital and PR services to consumer, B2B, healthcare and tourism clients; comparable in size, geography, and integrated service mix to Hoffman York.

Emerging players

• Mekanism: Independent creative and media agency known for integrated brand storytelling across digital, social, PR and content; comparable as a similarly sized independent but with a stronger digital/content orientation and West Coast client base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hoffmanyork
• Facebookfacebook.com/hoffmanyorkadvertising
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hoffman-york

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 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 Hoffman York