C I Design

What C I Design does

CI Design, Inc. is a privately held, full-service brand and marketing agency headquartered at 306 N Milwaukee St. in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward. Founded in 1993, the firm employs 51–100 people and operates under a proprietary “Creative Intelligence™” methodology that pairs brand strategy with creative execution. Its service portfolio spans brand strategy, content marketing, SEO, paid media, video production, web design and development, and platform migrations, with deep technical expertise in Kentico MVC supplemented by Webflow and WordPress capabilities and custom integrations with Salsify (PIM), Widen (DAM), and Azure Search.

The agency’s primary customer base is B2B and industrial — including manufacturers, commercial equipment companies, and foodservice firms — alongside regional organizations such as the Milwaukee Brewers, Potawatomi, and SURG Restaurant Group’s 3rd Street Market Hall and The Avenue developments. Notable enterprise engagements include a two-year digital transformation for Vollrath Foodservice (a Kentico MVC build serving 10,000 products and five audience segments), a Progressive Web App for Culligan equipping 800+ sales reps, and a website redesign for Versiti under enterprise security and compliance requirements. The in-house video production team has won multiple Emmy Awards and Telly Awards for broadcast work.

Commercially, CI Design operates a project-based and retainer professional services model, monetizing through brand engagements, multi-month digital transformation projects, ongoing paid media management, and video production retainers. The firm is sales-led, acquiring clients through direct outreach, referrals, and inbound website inquiries, with a content marketing program (blog, social, newsletter) supporting top-of-funnel demand. The agency has no disclosed outside funding, parent company, or acquisition activity and is independently owned and operated.

Name

C I Design

Legal name

CI Design, Inc.

Website

https://cidesigninc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

CI Design is a Milwaukee-based, full-service brand and marketing agency (founded 1993, 51–100 employees) that provides branding, video production, web development, and digital marketing services to B2B industrial, foodservice, and regional enterprise clients, anchored by deep Kentico MVC platform expertise and an in-house Emmy-winning creative team.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marketing & Advertising Services

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430), Other Specialized Design Services (54149), Graphic Design Services (54143)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Creative & Experience Design Agencies (Web/App/UX) (MPAAAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Graphic Design & Visual Communications (Collateral, Illustration) (MPAAAEAC), Environmental & Experiential Brand Design (Retail/Exhibit/Signage) (MPAAAEAG)

Keywords

• Brand strategy services
• Video production services
• Web development services
• B2B industrial marketing
• Digital advertising services

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

Revenue model

1. Brand Strategy & Marketing Services: Core agency revenue from branding strategy, marketing strategy, content marketing, SEO strategy, and digital advertising services. Projects typically involve long sales cycles with B2B industrial clients.
2. Video Production: Full-service video production including broadcast commercials, corporate videos, brand storytelling, social media content, and animation. In-house team with music composition and sound design capabilities.
3. Web Development: Website design and development services including UX, digital strategy, Kentico implementations, and platform migrations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CI Design is a creative agency delivering integrated branding, marketing strategy, video production, web development, content marketing, SEO strategy, and digital advertising services. Its work is targeted primarily at B2B industrial manufacturers and select consumer-facing organizations, applied through the agency's proprietary Creative Intelligence™ methodology to drive measurable brand and marketing outcomes.

Product overview

CI Design is a full-service Brand and Marketing Agency offering branding, marketing strategy, video production, web development, content marketing, SEO strategy, and digital advertising services. The agency operates as a service-based consultancy rather than a product-based company, delivering Creative Intelligence™ to help clients convert curious prospects into customers. No standalone software products, platforms, or modules are offered.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Branding Services Development of brand identity systems, positioning, messaging, and visual systems for B2B industrial manufacturers and consumer brands.
• Marketing Strategy Services Strategic marketing planning covering positioning, audience definition, messaging, channel mix, and integrated campaign roadmaps for industrial and consumer clients.
• Video Production Services End-to-end video production for brand, product, and marketing applications, with associated industry recognition including Emmy and Telly awards.
• Web Development Services Custom website design and development using Kentico MVC, Webflow, and WordPress, with custom integrations including Salsify, Widen, Azure Search, Google Analytics, and New Relic.
• Content Marketing Services Creation and distribution of brand-aligned content supporting demand generation, brand awareness, and sales enablement for B2B manufacturers and consumer clients.
• SEO Strategy Services Search engine optimization strategy and implementation designed to improve organic visibility and qualified inbound traffic for client websites.
• Digital Advertising Services Paid digital media planning, buying, and optimization across search, social, and display channels for B2B industrial and consumer clients.
• Creative Intelligence™ Agency Methodology CI Design's proprietary agency-wide methodology applied across engagements to align creative output with measurable business and marketing outcomes.

Quantifiable outcome

• $6M in qualified pipeline generated for Wolf Paving in 9 months with over 1/3 of opportunities closed
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

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.

• KenticocoreTechnology or IntegrationKentico is a key technology partner for CID's web development practice. CID has deep expertise in Kentico platform including MVC development, Page Builder, Forms Builder, and Kentico Xperience. The agency is recognized as one of few regional teams with advanced MVC capabilities and has built multiple award-winning Kentico websites for clients including Vollrath Foodservice, Versiti, and Metal-Era.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Hanson Dodge: Milwaukee creative and brand experience agency offering branding, web, and content services for active-lifestyle and B2B clients, similar in size, geography, and integrated service model.
• Schafer Condon Carter: Chicago-based independent full-service agency providing branding, advertising, digital, and content; comparable in size and offerings, with peer-overlap through Midwest regional clients.
• VI Marketing & Branding: Midwest-based independent agency (Omaha) with B2B and industrial vertical presence, offering brand strategy, marketing, and digital services analogous to CI Design's positioning.
• Bader Rutter: Milwaukee-based full-service marketing agency historically serving B2B industrial and manufacturing clients, directly comparable in geography, vertical focus, and integrated services to CI Design.
• Laughlin Constable: Milwaukee-headquartered full-service creative and digital agency with comparable B2B and consumer client work, similar employee scale, and overlapping service lines in brand, video, and digital.
• tmwi (Tuesdays Moriarty Walker): Milwaukee-based integrated creative agency operating in the same regional market with comparable brand, digital, and video production capabilities for B2B clients.

Broad incumbents

• Godfrey: Pittsburgh-based B2B marketing agency with deep industrial vertical expertise and broader campaign capabilities, directly comparable in client-type and integrated services but at larger scale.
• Barkley: Independent Kansas City creative agency offering brand, digital, and media capabilities; larger in scale and broader in scope than CI Design, competing for similar enterprise marketing engagements.

Others

• 5 Meta Skills: Web design and digital marketing agency based in Milwaukee; not a direct competitor given scale and capability differences, but a local industry peer in regional creative/web services.
• Kentico Xperience Implementation Partners: The technology platform whose partner ecosystem (agencies certified in Kentico MVC) competes with CI Design's specific CMS-implementation practice for similar enterprise website projects.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CIDesignInc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/CIDesignMKE
• Facebookfacebook.com/cidesigninc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ci-design-inc
• Instagraminstagram.com/cidesigninc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 C I Design