What Hatched Media does

Hatched Media is an Australian-owned, independent full-service media agency founded in 2013 by Jack Byrne and headquartered in Melbourne (Windsor), with a regional office in Sydney. The agency serves enterprise and mid-market clients across FMCG, retail, automotive, financial services, government, and education — its named roster includes Bunnings, Moose Toys, Coca-Cola, Kia, AIA Australia, Clark Rubber, Judo Bank, Open Universities Australia, Dairy Australia, Conga Foods, Automotive Brands Group, and Reece. Services span communications strategy, attention-based media planning, performance media, retail media, SEO, data & technology, programmatic, and media investment. The GTM model is sales-led direct engagement with senior-led account teams and multi-year custom retainers, supplemented by thought leadership in industry publications and AFR Best Places to Work recognition.

The firm's proprietary product surface comprises three differentiated assets. First, Hatched iD is an identity solution launched in December 2023 designed to help brands reach audiences in a post-cookie environment. Second, Retail Performance Index™ is a self-described world-first retail benchmarking tool that quantifies retailer performance against category and the Australian market, with stated revenue-uplift measurement against improvement levers. Third, attentionTRACE is integrated at the heart of media planning for attention measurement. Supporting tech stack expertise covers SA360, Datorama, and Google Experience Cloud. Hatched operates an 'agency village' structure rather than modular software products, and competes on independence (no holding company parent) and senior-team continuity as core positioning.

Revenue is generated through media buying commissions, service fees, and project- or retainer-based engagements — no public pricing tiers exist. Pricing is custom-quoted per client scope, with billing typically structured as multi-year contracts. The firm has not raised any disclosed external funding rounds and remains privately held by founders and operating leadership, operating from two offices and an internal culture emphasis (flat structure, Shadow Board, AFR Best Places to Work 2021/2022/2024) that supports what the agency characterizes as high staff retention.

Name

Hatched Media

Legal name

Hatched Media

Website

https://hatchedmedia.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Hatched Media is an Australian-owned, independent full-service media agency founded in 2013, headquartered in Melbourne with a Sydney office. It serves enterprise clients across FMCG, retail, automotive, financial services, government, and education, with proprietary tools including Hatched iD and Retail Performance Index™.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Media Agency Services

NAICS

Media Buying Agencies (54183), Media Representatives (541840)

akta.pro primary industry

Media Planning, Buying & Optimization (BPAFAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Full-Service Media Planning & Buying (MPAAABAA), Audience Measurement & Media Research (Ratings, Attribution, Media Mix Insights) (MPAAALAM)

Keywords

• Media planning services
• Media buying agency
• Retail media networks
• Performance media buying
• Independent media agency

Headquarters

HQ city

South Yarra

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Media Agency Services: Full-service media agency providing communications strategy, attention planning, performance media, retail media, data & technology, programmatic, and media investment services. Revenue generated through media buying commissions and service fees.
2. Retail Media Services: Specialized retail practice offering strategic advisory, capability building, and implementation for retailers and brands navigating retail media networks. Includes measurement and reporting services.
3. SEO & Digital Services: SEO strategy, technical SEO, content optimization, authority building, AI optimization, and experience services (CRO/UX). Billed as retained services or project-based engagements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Hatched Media is an Australian-owned, independent full-service media agency providing strategic media planning and buying across traditional and digital channels. Core offerings include communications strategy, attention planning, performance media, retail media, data & technology, programmatic, and media investment services, augmented by proprietary tools such as the Hatched iD identity solution and the Retail Performance Index™.

Product overview

Hatched Media is an Australian-owned independent media agency offering a unified suite of media services rather than a software platform. The core offerings include strategic media planning and buying across traditional and digital channels, with named products and services including Hatched iD (identity solution), Hatched Retail (retail media practice), Retail Performance Index™ (proprietary measurement tool), and AI & SEO Services. The agency provides services across communications strategy, attention planning, performance media, data & technology, programmatic, and media investment, delivered through an 'agency village' approach rather than modular software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Hatched iD: Proprietary identity solution created to better reach existing and new audiences, drive engagement and ultimately effectiveness.
• Hatched Retail
• Retail Performance Index™

Products and services

• Media Planning & Buying Services Full-service media planning and buying across paid, owned, and earned channels, including communications strategy, attention planning, programmatic, and media investment. Delivered to enterprise and mid-market Australian advertisers across FMCG, retail, automotive, financial services, and government.
• Hatched Retail A specialised retail media agency practice that helps retailers quantify and build out retail media networks and assists brands in navigating those networks across the full 'sofa to sale' customer journey. Includes strategy, capability building, implementation, and measurement.
• SEO & AI Search Services Retained or project-based search engine optimisation offering that combines technical SEO, content and authority building, conversion rate optimisation, user experience, and AI search optimisation (GEO/AEO) for brands seeking organic visibility.
• Hatched iD A proprietary identity and audience solution that enables brands to identify, reach, and engage target audiences across channels in a cookieless future. Offered as part of Hatched Media's planning and activation toolkit for clients.
• Retail Performance Index™ A proprietary retail optimisation benchmarking tool that measures a retailer's performance against its category and Australia's leading retailers, delivering actionable improvement steps and quantified revenue uplift estimates.

Quantifiable outcome

• Quantifiable revenue uplifts against key improvement measures for retail clients using Retail Performance Index™
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers18 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

AI capability3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Special AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2025Hatched appointed alongside Special Australia as creative and media agencies for Jack Link's following competitive pitch. Co-agency partnership delivering integrated creative and media services.
• My Net ZerominorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 July 2023Hatched partnered with My Net Zero to offset office and work-from-home carbon emissions, demonstrating commitment to sustainability. Hatched CEO Stephen Fisher stated the partnership addresses issues important to Hatchlings.
• attentionTRACEcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party attention measurement platform integrated at the heart of Hatched's planning process. Described as enabling fundamental shift in planning objectives around active and passive attention.
• Google (SA360, Experience Cloud)coreTechnology or IntegrationAgency has expertise in Google marketing technology tools including Search Ads 360 (SA360) and Experience Cloud for measurement and analytics.
• DatoramacoreTechnology or IntegrationMarketing intelligence platform used by Hatched for data analytics and reporting.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Thinkerbell: Australian independent agency offering integrated media and creative services with a similar brand-led, founder-built culture. Comparable positioning as a non-holding-company alternative in Australia.
• Atomic 212: Australian independent media agency operating across planning, buying and data with a similar mid-sized, founder-led profile. Most directly comparable independent competitor in the Australian market.
• Half Dome: Australian independent media agency with comparable service portfolio in planning and buying across digital and traditional channels. Direct competitor for the same mid-market and challenger-brand accounts.

Broad incumbents

• Mindshare Australia: WPP/GroupM media agency operating in Australia. Overlaps on full-service planning and buying, with materially larger headcount and global tooling access.
• PHD Australia: Omnicom-owned media network active in Australia. Competes for similar enterprise clients with comparable strategic planning and data-led buying capabilities.
• Zenith Australia: Publicis-owned media network active in Australia with full-service planning, buying and analytics. Comparable end-to-end service offering but with global network backing.
• Wavemaker Australia: GroupM (WPP) media agency operating in Australia. Overlaps on data-driven planning, buying and content activation, supported by global network infrastructure.
• Starcom Australia: Publicis media brand operating in Australia across planning, buying and data. Overlaps on enterprise client servicing with the resources of a global holding company.
• UM Australia: IPG Mediabrands media network active in Australia. Comparable full-service media offering with global analytics platforms and cross-market execution.
• OMD Australia: Australian arm of Omnicom's global media network. Competes for the same enterprise clients with greater scale, integrated data and cross-market capabilities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hatched Media