Zeleman

What Zeleman does

Zeleman Communications is Ethiopia's leading full-service communications, advertising and production agency, founded in 2005 by award-winning filmmaker Zelalem Woldemariam and headquartered in Addis Ababa. The firm operates a multi-division model organized around an integrated marketing communications platform that combines creative development, in-house film/video production with VFX and post-production, digital marketing, media planning and buying, media monitoring, research and insights, PR and events, BTL/experiential marketing, and social/behaviour-change campaigns. Eight specialized sub-brands (Buzz Digital, Zeleman Production, 7Senses, zSMART, We Monitor, Ignite, On Point, Media Shop) operate as wholly-owned divisions, complemented by ecosystem ventures Zeleman Academy and the CRAFT Addis festival.

The company serves enterprise clients through direct client engagement, with 100+ homegrown and international professionals delivering campaigns for 300+ brand partners across consumer brands, financial institutions, aviation, telecommunications, automotive, energy, media, and development/government organizations. Notable clients include Coca-Cola, Diageo (Guinness, Malta Guinness), Heineken, Nestlé, Unilever, PepsiCo, Visa, Safaricom/M-PESA, Vodafone, Ethiopian Airlines, BYD, TotalEnergies, Canal+, and multilateral agencies such as UNDP, UNICEF, USAID, the World Bank, WHO, and the EU. Revenue is generated through quote-based professional services fees across creative campaigns, production engagements, and media buying commissions, plus subscription-style media monitoring retainers.

Distribution is anchored by direct buying relationships with 36+ Ethiopian TV channels, 30+ radio stations, 7+ press titles, and nationwide OOH networks, making Zeleman one of the largest media buyers in Ethiopia. The firm is privately held, founder-led, and has grown organically with no disclosed institutional investors or M&A activity. Recognition includes the Bronze Giraffe award (2025) and selection of the founder/CEO to the Cannes Lions 2026 Film Craft Lions Shortlisting Jury.

Name

Zeleman

Legal name

Zeleman Communications

Website

https://zeleman.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Zeleman is Ethiopia's leading full-service communications, advertising and production agency, serving 300+ enterprise brand partners across consumer goods, finance, telecom, aviation, and development sectors with integrated creative, production, digital, and media-buying services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advertising and Marketing Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (541810), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418), Media Buying Agencies (54183)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Creative Concepting & Campaign Development (BPAFAEAD), Creative & Brand Campaign Development (BPAFAAAB)

Keywords

• Communications agency services
• Advertising campaign production
• Media planning buying
• Digital marketing services
• Film video production

Headquarters

HQ city

Addis Ababa

HQ country

Ethiopia

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Creative and Advertising Services: Full-service communications and advertising agency providing creative development, branding, and integrated marketing campaigns for local and international brands.
2. Film and Video Production: Television and radio spots, feature films, documentaries, corporate videos, TV shows, and event coverage from concept to completion.
3. Media Planning and Buying: Media planning and buying services across Ethiopian broadcast, print, and out-of-home networks. One of the largest media buyers in Ethiopia.
4. Media Monitoring Services: Round-the-clock monitoring allowing brands to have control and accountability over media buying processes.
5. Social Marketing Campaigns: Social marketing campaigns, behavioural change initiatives, communications for development, social franchising, and CSR programs through zSMART division.
6. Research and Insights: Usage and attitude studies, data-driven campaign planning, script and advert pre-testing, campaign optimisation, product sampling, and campaign evaluation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Zeleman is Ethiopia's leading full-service communications, advertising and production agency. It delivers integrated marketing campaigns for local and international brands through nine in-house divisions: creative/advertising, film and video production, digital marketing, BTL and experiential marketing, social/behavior change marketing, media planning and buying, media monitoring, PR and special events, and research and insights. Clients range from consumer brands and financial institutions to government and international development organizations.

Product overview

Zeleman is a full-service integrated communications, advertising, and production agency with multiple specialized divisions operating as a unified portfolio. The core agency offers creative and branding services, while specialized divisions include Buzz Digital (digital marketing), Zeleman Production (film/video production), 7Senses (BTL and experiential marketing), zSMART (social and behaviour change marketing), We Monitor (media monitoring), Ignite (PR and special events), On Point (research and insights), and Media Shop (media planning and buying). Two initiatives—Zeleman Academy (creative education) and Craft Addis (creative festival)—extend the agency's influence beyond traditional advertising services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Buzz Digital: Digital marketing services including SEO, social media advertising campaigns, content marketing, and digital analysis.
• 7senses
• zsmart
• We Monitor
• Ignite
• On Point
• Media Shop
• Zeleman Academy
• Craft Addis

Products and services

• Creative Communications and Advertising Core advertising and brand communications service offering creative development, branding and integrated marketing campaigns for local and international brands operating in Ethiopia.
• Film and Video Production End-to-end film and video production services spanning television and radio spots, feature films, documentaries, corporate videos, TV shows and event coverage, supported by state-of-the-art studios and editing suites plus post-production services including visual effects, color grading, sound design and music composition.
• Digital Marketing Services (Buzz Digital) Digital marketing division offering SEO, paid search and search engine marketing (SEM), social media advertising campaigns, content marketing and digital analysis for brands targeting the Ethiopian market.
• BTL and Experiential Marketing (7Senses) Below-the-line and experiential marketing service delivering scalable direct marketing campaigns, brand activation, audience engagement and direct communication programs.
• Social Marketing and Behavior Change (zSMART) Social marketing service combining socio-economic development experience with local knowledge to execute social change campaigns, behavioral change initiatives, social franchising, communications for development and CSR programs.
• Media Planning and Buying (Media Shop) One of the largest media buying operations in Ethiopia, planning and buying across television, radio, print and out-of-home channels with direct relationships across 36+ TV channels and 30+ radio stations.
• Media Monitoring (We Monitor) Round-the-clock monitoring of TV stations, radio stations, digital media, press and out-of-home advertising, giving brands control and accountability over media buying processes.
• PR and Special Events (Ignite) Public relations and special events service offering event planning, media relations, communications consultancy and crisis management.
• Research and Insights (On Point) Marketing research and consumer insights service delivering usage and attitude studies, data-driven campaign planning, script and advert pre-testing, campaign optimization, product sampling and campaign evaluation.

Named customers30 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Craft Addis Festival PartnerscoreOthers · 1 January 2026Festival bringing together artists, innovators, cultural leaders, creators, and industry builders from across Africa and around the world to explore and celebrate Africa's creative future. CRAFT Addis 2026 brought together visionary minds to discuss how Africa can package, monetize, and own its immense creative capital.
• Cannes Lions International Festival of CreativityflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026CEO Zelalem Woldemariam selected to serve on the Shortlisting Jury for the Film Craft Lions at Cannes Lions 2026. One of the world's most respected platforms celebrating excellence in creativity and communication, bringing together leading global voices to recognise work that sets new creative benchmarks.
• Jobs Creation Commission (Ethiopia)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnership with Ethiopian Jobs Creation Commission for the Enkopa Campaign, which won the Bronze Giraffe award out of over 300 entries across Africa.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Ogilvy Africa: Global advertising network with a significant African presence (Ogilvy Africa), serving multinational brands across creative, advertising, and integrated communications in markets including Ethiopia. Directly comparable as a full-service creative agency serving the same multinational clients Zeleman services in Ethiopia.
• Publicis Groupe Africa: Global advertising holding group with operations across Africa, including Ethiopia. Directly comparable as a full-service creative and media agency serving the same multinational consumer and development-sector clients.
• McCann Worldgroup: Global advertising holding company with established African operations and a presence in Ethiopia (McCann Ethiopia). Competes directly for the same multinational client budgets across creative and integrated communications services.
• VML (formerly VMLY&R / JWT): Global creative agency network with legacy Ethiopia presence (formerly J. Walter Thompson Ethiopia). Comparable as a full-service creative agency serving multinational advertisers in the Ethiopian market.
• Dentsu: Global advertising network with growing African footprint. Comparable to Zeleman in offering integrated advertising and media services to multinational clients operating in African markets.
• Havas Worldwide: Global advertising network with African operations. Overlaps with Zeleman in offering integrated creative, media, and digital services to multinational advertisers in African growth markets.

Direct peers

• Scanad: East African (Kenya-based) full-service advertising agency with deep African market experience. Comparable as an independent African full-service creative and media agency serving multinational and regional brands across the region.
• Front Page Advertising Ethiopia: Ethiopia-based advertising agency competing for the same domestic Ethiopian clients and brand budgets. Direct competitor in the Ethiopian full-service advertising and communications market.
• Insight Communications Ethiopia: Ethiopia-based competitor advertising agency operating in the same domestic market. Directly competes with Zeleman for local Ethiopian clients, creative campaigns, and media buying across Ethiopian broadcast networks.

Regional players

• SO&U: Nigeria-based independent full-service advertising agency with strong West African presence. Comparable as an Africa-focused independent agency serving multinational clients across consumer, finance, and development verticals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=YnQ2deHJs5E
• Xx.com/ZelemanPLC

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries10 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 Zeleman