What SHAPE - The Brand Development Agency does

SHAPE - The Brand Development Agency (legal entity: Shape Branding Limited) is a Dublin-based brand development and creative design agency founded in 2006 and led by CEO Stephen Murphy. It operates as a privately held, founder-owned firm with a single headquarters in Swords, County Dublin, and a small team (1–10 employees) of brand strategists, designers, project managers, and support personnel. The agency's core proposition is a positioning-first, brand-led (rather than design-led) approach, anchored by its proprietary BrandRoute™ programme — a structured 360° methodology spanning Brand Audit, Brand Strategy, and Brand Development phases — offered either as a comprehensive programme or à la carte services including rebranding, brand auditing, CX mapping, brand architecture, and market research.

Revenue is generated through professional services and project-based fees across five streams: brand development services, creative design services (identity, packaging, print, environments, media advertising), recurring WIX website maintenance subscriptions, recurring SEO/PPC digital marketing packages, and printing services operated through an in-house Digital Print Centre with warehousing. Pricing is custom and quote-based per engagement, with multi-year contract options, sold via a consultative sales-led motion targeting ambitious growth companies and established brands across pharma, healthcare, finance, hospitality, aviation, and retail. Distribution is exclusively direct (phone, email, website contact form), with the agency's website exclusively built on the WIX platform where SHAPE operates as a WIX-accredited partner.

The client portfolio includes enterprise names such as Servier, Viatris, Trinity Care, Clonmel Healthcare, DHL, Kuehne+Nagel, Dublin Aerospace, IMDO, McCarthy's Irish Whiskey, Institute of Directors, and Natural Stone Carpets, alongside a healthcare-skewed list of consumer brands (Zoflora, Hedrin, Caldesene, Salus, Oyavas, Clonfolic, Easofen). The company holds a registered trademark on BrandRoute™, is accredited on the DesignRush agency directory, and participated in the Enterprise Ireland Online Retail Scheme 2022; no external funding, M&A, or public listing exists in the disclosed record.

Name

SHAPE - The Brand Development Agency

Legal name

Shape Branding Limited

Website

https://shapebranding.ie

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SHAPE is a Dublin-based brand development and creative design agency founded in 2006 that helps ambitious growth companies and established brands build, audit, and refresh brand strategy and identity through its proprietary BrandRoute™ programme and related design services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Brand Development Services: Professional services revenue from brand strategy, brand auditing, positioning, market research, customer experience mapping, and brand architecture services. Delivered through either comprehensive BrandRoute™ programme or individual a la carte services.
2. Creative Design Services: One-time project fees for brand identity design (logos, colours, taglines, typography, stationery), website design, branded environments, packaging design, print design, and media advertising production.
3. Website Maintenance Services: Ongoing maintenance services for WIX websites including software updates, plug-ins, and issue resolution. Offered as recurring service packages.
4. Digital Marketing Services: SEO and PPC marketing services to help websites rank high for chosen keywords.
5. Printing Services: Full-service printing capabilities with in-house Digital Print Centre, plus warehousing of printed materials until needed.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SHAPE is a Dublin-based brand development and creative design agency that delivers strategic brand development (rebranding, brand auditing, positioning, market research, customer experience mapping, brand activation, brand architecture) alongside creative design services (brand identity, websites, packaging, print, media advertising). Its flagship offering is the proprietary BrandRoute™ 360° programme, available as a structured end-to-end engagement or as individual à la carte services, with website design delivered exclusively on the WIX platform.

Product overview

SHAPE Brand Development is a brand agency offering a two-pronged service portfolio: (1) Creative Design Services — covering brand identity design (logos, colours, taglines, typography, stationery, signage), website design, branded environments, packaging design, print design, media advertising, and support services (photography, videography, animation); and (2) Brand Development Services — spanning brand auditing, positioning and strategy, market research, customer experience (CX) mapping, brand activation, and brand architecture. The flagship offering is BrandRoute™, a proprietary 360° brand development programme delivered across three phases: Brand Audit, Brand Strategy, and Brand Development. Individual brand development services are also available on an a la carte basis. All website design is built exclusively on the WIX platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Creative Design Services Comprehensive suite of visual design services covering brand identity design (naming, logos, colours, taglines, typography, stationery, imagery, tone of voice, uniforms, vehicles, signage), website design, branded environments, packaging design, print design (annual reports, magazines, brochures, catalogues), media advertising (concepts, storyboards, radio/TV production), and support services (photography, videography, animation, copywriting, project management). Delivered to businesses across pharma, healthcare, finance, hospitality, aviation and retail.
• Brand Development Services Strategic brand development services including rebranding, brand auditing, positioning and strategy, market research, brand image definition, customer experience (CX) mapping, brand activation, and brand architecture services for ambitious growth companies and established brands.
• BrandRoute™ Brand Development Programme Proprietary 360° brand development programme that serves as a structured roadmap to take brands from their current position to a defined future success position, delivered across three phases: Brand Audit, Brand Strategy, and Brand Development.
• Individual Brand Development Services (À la carte) Standalone brand services for brands at various lifecycle stages, including CX mapping, brand strategy, localisation, exploratory brand check, competitor audit, touchpoint analysis, and brand architecture review, available without committing to the full BrandRoute™ programme.
• Website Design Studio Premium-quality brochure and e-commerce website design and development built on the WIX platform, including UX design, content management, self-editing capabilities, integrated design, mobile responsiveness, copywriting, and hosting, with ongoing website maintenance packages and SEO/PPC digital marketing services.

Named customers19 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Enterprise Ireland Online Retail Scheme 2022minorOthersSHAPE participated in the Enterprise Ireland Online Retail Scheme 2022, a government-funded programme supporting Irish retailers with online development. This indicates SHAPE has helped clients access government support for digital transformation projects.
• DesignRushminorOthersSHAPE is listed as an Accredited Agency on DesignRush, a B2B marketplace for finding and vetting agencies. This provides visibility and credibility through third-party validation.
• WIXcoreTechnology or IntegrationSHAPE specializes exclusively in WIX website design and development after selecting WIX as their primary platform following extensive research. WIX is a multi-billion dollar company with ongoing software development, enabling SHAPE to offer clients latest website design capabilities without requiring code knowledge from clients.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Glaze: Dublin-based brand and creative agency offering brand strategy, identity design, and digital services to Irish enterprise clients. Operates in the same Irish market with comparable service lines and client profile to SHAPE.
• Red Dog Design: Dublin-based brand and design agency providing branding, graphic design, and digital services. Directly comparable as a similarly sized Irish brand agency targeting enterprise and SME clients.
• Image Now: Irish creative and brand agency offering design, branding, and digital services from Dublin. Competes for the same Irish mid-market and enterprise brand work as SHAPE.
• Bulletproof: London-headquartered brand design agency with global offices offering brand strategy, identity, packaging, and digital experience design. Comparable in service mix and client tier to SHAPE, with broader geographic reach.
• Thinkhouse: Dublin-based creative agency with brand, design, and communications capabilities serving Irish and international clients. A direct Irish competitor in the same mid-market brand services space.

Broad incumbents

• Landor & Fitch: Global brand consultancy and WPP network member offering brand strategy, identity, and experience design at multinational scale. Operates in the same brand development category as SHAPE but with vastly larger scope, headcount, and global footprint.
• Interbrand: Global brand consultancy offering brand strategy, identity, and valuation services to the world's largest enterprises. A broad incumbent that competes for the same enterprise brand mandates SHAPE targets, but with global delivery capability.
• Pentagram: Independent global design firm with multiple partner-led studios offering branding, identity, and design services. Overlaps with SHAPE on visual identity and brand design but at a much larger scale and international reach.
• Coley Porter Bell: WPP-owned UK brand design agency offering brand strategy, identity, and packaging design. Directly comparable service offering to SHAPE, particularly in regulated verticals like FMCG and healthcare, but as part of a global holding company network.

Emerging players

• Studio Output: Independent London-based brand and design studio offering brand strategy, identity, and digital design to ambitious growth-stage and enterprise clients. Comparable in positioning and client focus, though with a stronger digital/tech tilt than SHAPE.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ShapeBranding
• Facebookfacebook.com/shapebranding
• Pinterestpinterest.ie/Shapebranding

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 SHAPE - The Brand Development Agency