Captains of Industry

What Captains of Industry does

Captains of Industry is a privately held, independent creative marketing consultancy founded in 1999 and headquartered at 21 Union St, Boston, MA. The firm operates as a boutique practice with 1-10 employees, deliberately capping active client engagements at 10 to preserve senior-level creative attention. Its service portfolio spans three integrated categories: Strategy & Research (communications audits, ecosystem analysis, brand positioning), Creative Leadership (messaging, design, brand standards), and Communications Engineering (go-to-market planning, content strategy, managed distribution across email, social, paid, earned, and event channels). Adjacent offerings include website creation, content workshops, adjacent audience studies, belief and belonging mapping, and change management messaging.

The firm's core methodology is its 'Inverted Funnel' philosophy, which starts at the apex of the funnel by identifying powerful niches, aligning content to the selected audiences' habits of mind, and intersecting with them rather than interrupting them. The technology backbone is a content marketing and brand storytelling platform built around insight-driven, audience-targeted content experiences intended to educate, foster intimacy, and unlock possibilities for challenger brands. The firm has sectorized its go-to-market across three verticals: Energy (wind, solar, storage, conservation), Healthcare & Life Sciences, and Higher Education, with dedicated service pages and demonstrated case work in each.

Commercially, Captains of Industry generates revenue exclusively through professional services engagements (strategy consulting, creative production, and managed distribution) on a quote-based, bespoke basis. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The go-to-market is sales-led, direct, and highly selective: leadership-level partnerships with enterprise and startup clients acquired through direct outreach, industry presence, ecosystem credibility (Clean Tech Open mentorship, DNV GL Energy Executive Forum speaking), and brand reputation within target sectors. Notable clients include MIT Sloan, BlueWave Solar, DNV KEMA, BICEP (Ceres), Infraredx, First Wind (acquired for $2.4B after a multi-year Captains engagement), Antioch College, and American Beverage Marketers. Leadership comprises Clift Jones (President & CEO), co-founders Ted Page and Fred Surr (Principals, 25+ years experience each), and Ted Dillon (Managing Director). The firm maintains a 5-star Clutch rating and was named a top Boston agency by Clutch in 2018.

Name

Captains of Industry

Legal name

Captains of Industry

Website

https://captainsofindustry.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Captains of Industry is a privately held Boston boutique creative marketing consultancy that provides strategy, creative leadership, and communications engineering services exclusively to challenger brands in energy, healthcare, and higher education.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Marketing Consulting Services: Professional consulting engagements providing strategy, creative leadership, and communications engineering services to challenger brands. Engagements include brand messaging, product/brand design, content strategy, and managed distribution.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Captains of Industry is a creative marketing consultancy that provides strategy, creative leadership, and communications engineering services to challenger brands. They work with a maximum of 10 clients at a time, offering insights-driven, audience-targeted content experiences designed to educate audiences and shape opinions. Their services span strategy and research, creative leadership, and communications engineering, including go-to-market planning, content creation, website development, and managed distribution across email, social, paid, earned, and event channels.

Product overview

Captains of Industry is a creative marketing consulting firm offering a unified suite of services organized around their 'inverted funnel' philosophy, which starts at the apex by investigating powerful niches and aligning content to match selected groups' habits of mind. Their core service offerings include Strategy & Research, Creative Leadership, and Communications Engineering. Strategy & Research encompasses communications audits, ecosystem analysis, and brand positioning. Creative Leadership covers messaging, design, and brand standards. Communications Engineering handles go-to-market planning, content creation, and managed distribution across email, social, paid, earned, and events channels. The firm specializes in three primary sectors: Energy (wind, solar, storage), Healthcare & Life Sciences, and Higher Education. Their engagements typically include website creation, content workshops, and change management messaging. They work with a maximum of 10 clients at a time, emphasizing close partnership and opinion-shaping content designed to move markets and mindsets for challenger brands.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategy & Research

Quantifiable outcome

• Helped build First Wind from 25-person development company to $2.4 billion acquisition
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Clean Tech OpenminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCaptains of Industry serves as mentors for the Clean Tech Open Northeast program. Ted Dillon serves as mentor advising QBA on marketing strategy and audience development. Zoe Moutsos mentors a startup on storytelling and marketing strategy. Ted Page presented at Clean Tech Open's East Coast Academy on clean energy branding and marketing.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Mekanism: Independent creative agency known for working with challenger and emerging brands across content, advertising, and brand storytelling — closely aligned with Captains of Industry's challenger-brand, content-led positioning and similar boutique scale.
• Small Army: Boston-based independent creative agency offering brand, content, and marketing services to challenger and growth-stage clients — directly comparable on geography, scale, and challenger-brand focus.
• PAN Communications: Mid-size integrated marketing and PR agency with strong content marketing practice serving B2B technology, healthcare, and cleantech clients — directly comparable on sector mix and content-led service model.
• Bluetext: Boutique creative and content agency that specifically targets challenger and emerging brands, offering brand strategy, messaging, and digital marketing — closely aligned with Captains' challenger-brand focus.
• Walker Sands: Integrated B2B marketing agency with PR, content, and creative services targeting challenger brands in technology and adjacent verticals — comparable in integrated service model and mid-size boutique profile.
• Allen & Gerritsen: Boston-based independent creative and media agency serving challenger and growth-stage brands — comparable on city, independence, and integrated creative offering.
• Motion Agency: Independent B2B creative agency focused on challenger technology and industrial brands, offering strategy, content, and creative execution — directly comparable in client type and content-led service mix.
• Connelly Partners: Independently owned creative agency headquartered in Boston with content, brand, and advertising services — comparable as a fellow Boston-based independent creative shop.
• Manifesto: Independent creative agency purpose-built for challenger brands, with brand strategy and content offerings — closely aligned with Captains' challenger-brand, content-led positioning.

Broad incumbents

• GALE Partners: Larger independent creative and media agency offering brand, content, and commerce services to challenger and growth brands — comparable in challenger-brand focus but broader scale and service scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights1 record

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/captainsboston
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/captains-of-industry
• Instagraminstagram.com/captainsboston

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Captains of Industry