What Creative Equals does

Creative Equals is a UK-based diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) consultancy and training firm founded in 2016 by Ali Hanan, headquartered at the Portas Agency in Holborn, London. The firm delivers growth-driven strategy and capability transformation across four pillars: Brand and Experience Transformation, Culture and Capability Transformation, Audience and Insight Transformation, and Talent and Leadership Transformation. Products and services are delivered through bespoke consulting engagements, training programmes, applied bias workshops, inclusive communications reviews, and proprietary frameworks including the Four Pillars Transformation Framework, the Inclusive Comms Check, and the STOP IT Protocol developed by Lydia Amoah. The firm targets enterprise CMOs, Heads of Marketing, Brand Directors, and transformation leads at large multinationals, generating revenue through quote-based multi-year consulting engagements, training contracts, paid flagship events (the annual RISE conference), community programmes (CE Women, Disabled Creatives, Future Leaders, Creative Comeback), and the Google Career Certificate Scholarship Programme. The firm operates a global associate model across key markets — spanning the UK, India, and broader international markets — and is the chosen Cannes Lions 2026 Impact Partner and World Federation of Advertisers' Inclusive Marketing Strategic Partner. Customer logos include McDonald's, Google, Meta, GSK, Havas, ITV, Diageo, Aviva, Nurofen, Vanish, Boots, McCain, Dr Martens, and the UK Government Equalities Office.

Name

Creative Equals

Legal name

Creative Equals Limited

Website

https://creativeequals.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Creative Equals is a UK-based DEI and inclusive marketing consultancy serving enterprise CMOs and marketing leaders through bespoke strategy, training, and community programmes, with the annual RISE conference and four-pillar transformation framework as its flagship offerings.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Diversity and Inclusion Consulting

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) & Belonging Consulting (BPAHAGAJ)

Keywords

• Diversity and inclusion consulting
• Inclusive marketing strategy
• DEI training services
• Inclusive communications review
• Marketing transformation consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Strategy Services: Bespoke consulting engagements delivering DEI strategy, inclusive marketing audits, content development, and facilitation for enterprise clients. Deliverables include inclusive comms reviews, brand strategy guidelines, and cultural transformation programmes.
2. Training and Capability Building: Team training programmes, bias training, inclusive communication workshops, and accelerator innovation workshops. Training includes applied bias training, inclusive insight reviews, and inclusion guidelines development.
3. Events and Conferences: RISE annual conference and related event attendance, bringing together senior marketing leaders for inclusive transformation learning and networking. Events feature keynote speakers, panel discussions, and workshops.
4. Community Programmes: Programmes including Disabled Creatives, Women's Business Leaders, and Future Leaders that upskill underrepresented talent. Some programmes are free (Disabled Creatives) while others serve enterprise clients.
5. Google Certification Courses: Partnership with Google delivering career certificate scholarship programmes aimed at underrepresented and marginalised groups, with career pathway support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Creative Equals is a UK-based DEI and inclusive marketing consultancy that delivers bespoke consulting, training, and community programmes to enterprise marketing leaders. Services are organised around four transformation pillars: Brand and Experience, Culture and Capability, Audience and Insight, and Talent and Leadership. The company also operates the annual RISE conference, community programmes (Women, Disabled Creatives), leadership development initiatives (Future Leaders, Creative Comeback), and an educational partnership with Google on career certificates.

Product overview

Creative Equals is a consultancy firm, not a software product company. The organisation delivers growth-driven strategy and capability transformation across four main service pillars: Brand and Experience Transformation, Culture and Capability Transformation, Audience and Insight Transformation, and Talent and Leadership Transformation. The company also operates community programmes (Women's Community, Disabled Creatives), leadership development initiatives (Future Leaders, Women's Business Leaders, Creative Comeback returners programme), an annual conference (RISE Series), educational partnerships (Google Certification Courses), and advisory services (Inclusive Communications Review, Inclusive Innovation Workshops). Creative Equals functions as a service-based consultancy rather than a technology platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RISE: Global conference for brands and businesses invested in driving sustainable growth through inclusion
• CE Community | Women
• CE Community | Disabled Creatives
• Creative Equals Business
• Creative Comeback
• Disabled Creatives
• Future Leaders
• Google Certification Courses

Products and services

• Brand and Experience Transformation Strategic consulting service helping enterprise brands evolve positioning and communications through audits, experience mapping, messaging frameworks, and campaign optimisation to improve connection with modern audiences.
• Culture and Capability Transformation Training programmes that embed inclusive, audience-first communication across organisations, building capability that changes how teams think, create, and deliver.
• Audience and Insight Transformation Research and analytics services including insight audits, behavioural analysis, and ethnographic research to reveal diverse and underserved audience needs for growth opportunities.
• Talent and Leadership Transformation Programmes that empower ERG networks, talent and recruitment initiatives, including Women's and Disabled Creatives programmes and Future Leaders programme.
• RISE Series Conference Annual marketing summit focused on inclusive transformation for growth, bringing together CMOs and marketing leaders to explore audience, brand, and creativity themes.
• CE Community (Women) Community programme supporting women in the creative industry through networking, training, and access to opportunities.
• Disabled Creatives Programme Free three-week creative leadership programme for disabled and neurodivergent talent offering best-in-class training from D&AD.
• Future Leaders Programme Programme spotlighting up-and-coming female, non-binary and gender non-conforming leaders in the advertising industry to drive progress and eradicate barriers.
• Creative Comeback Returner programme helping women return to the creative industry after career breaks, partnered with D&AD and Diageo to change perceptions of CV gaps.
• Women's Business Leaders Programme Programme and community providing women, non-binary and gender non-conforming people with skills and network for leadership advancement.
• Google x Creative Equals Career Certificate Scholarship Programme Scholarship programme in partnership with Google providing career certificates, tools, knowledge, and mentor support to find employment in marketing and creative fields for underrepresented groups.
• Inclusive Communications Review Advisory service reviewing brand communications through a critical inclusive lens to develop strategic guidelines for authentic inclusion.
• Inclusive Innovation Workshops Accelerator workshops fostering inclusive ideation and pipeline development, including bias training and inclusive insight reviews for enterprise clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 80 companies attended the RISE 2025 one-day event, demonstrating significant market traction.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature11 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Cannes Lions International Festival of CreativityflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Creative Equals is Cannes Lion's official 2026 Impact Partner. This is a premier global advertising festival partnership that positions Creative Equals as the go-to organisation for inclusive creative excellence. The partnership involves programme integration throughout the speaker experience and content curation.
• World Federation of Advertisers (WFA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Creative Equals was chosen as WFA's Inclusive Marketing Strategic Partner in 2023. This is a global strategic partnership to advance inclusive marketing practices across WFA's membership of major multinational advertisers.
• UK Trade MissioncoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2022Creative Equals was selected as the UK's trade mission partner to Cannes Lion, supporting UK marketing industry representation at the festival.
• GooglecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership delivering the Creative Equals x Google Career Certificate Scholarship Programme aimed at underrepresented, vulnerable, and marginalised groups. The goal is to equip participants with tools, knowledge, and mentor support to find employment in marketing and creative fields. Google is also a client of Creative Equals.
• D&ADcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerD&AD provides best-in-class training for Creative Equals programmes including Disabled Creatives (a three-week creative leadership programme) and Creative Comeback India. D&AD provides training curriculum and credibility to the programmes.
• DiageocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiageo is a partner for Creative Comeback India, an International Women's Month initiative calling female creatives in India who want to restart their careers. Diageo's CMO Deepika Warrier endorsed the programme publicly.
• Effie UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative Equals partnered with Effie UK to explore how inclusion drives creativity and brand effectiveness. Conducted qualitative research on recent Effie UK award winners and hosted joint events examining inclusion and effectiveness.
• CreativebriefminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCreativebrief produced the RISE Trends Report summarising key insights from RISE 2022 and 2024 conferences. Managing Editor Nicola Kemp led the report creation.
• Government Equalities OfficeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Government Equalities Office awarded Creative Equals a 'Returners' fund in 2019 to support returner programmes. Government Equalities Office is also a client of Creative Equals.
• Getty Images / Dove / GirlgazeminorOthersCreative Equals curates and recommends the #ShowUs inclusive image library - a collaboration between Getty Images, Dove, and Girlgaze providing 5,000+ photographs of diverse female-identifying and non-binary individuals for use in inclusive marketing.
• Portas AgencyminorOthersCreative Equals is based at the Portas Agency in Holborn, London. This is a co-working/hub arrangement for the entrepreneurial team.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Livity: UK-based creative agency working at the intersection of youth, brands and social impact. Adjacent peer serving similar enterprise brand clients with creative and purpose-led programmes, including talent and community initiatives.
• Mother Tongue: UK-based B Corp creative and communications agency focused on purpose-driven work, sustainability and social impact. Adjacent peer sharing Creative Equals' brand-side clientele and progressive positioning but with a creative agency model rather than pure consultancy.

Direct peers

• Inclusive Companies: UK-based diversity, equality and inclusion consultancy and awards body that delivers inclusion strategy, training and benchmarking to employers. Directly comparable as a UK DEI consultancy serving enterprise clients.
• Pearn Kandola: UK-based diversity and inclusion consultancy with a psychology-led practice focused on inclusive leadership, bias reduction, and organisational culture change. Comparable to Creative Equals in D&I advisory and training for enterprise clients.
• EW Group: UK-based equality, diversity and inclusion consultancy that delivers strategy, training, and policy work to enterprise and public-sector clients. Directly comparable D&I consulting peer with similar service mix.
• The Unmistakables: UK-based cultural insight consultancy that helps brands connect with diverse audiences through research, strategy, and training. Closely comparable to Creative Equals in offering inclusive marketing strategy and capability-building to enterprise CMOs.

Others

• The Future Laboratory: UK-based consumer trends and foresight consultancy that publishes insight for brands. Related to Creative Equals through serving brand leaders with cultural and audience insight, but focused on forecasting rather than inclusive transformation.

Broad incumbents

• Accenture: Global professional services firm with a sizable DEI and inclusion practice (incorporating the former Brook Graham). Comparable to Creative Equals as an enterprise D&I advisor but with broader transformation mandates and larger procurement leverage.
• WPP: Global advertising holding company whose agencies (Ogilvy, GroupM, VMLY&R) embed DEI and inclusive marketing offerings alongside broader creative and media services. Comparable through overlapping enterprise mandates and inclusive marketing positioning.
• Dentsu: Global advertising holding company with established DEI, sustainability and inclusive creative practices across its media and creative agencies. Broad incumbent competing for the same enterprise CMO transformation budgets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/creativeequals
• Xx.com/CreativeEquals
• Facebookfacebook.com/creativeequals

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 Creative Equals