Ear to the Ground

What Ear to the Ground does

Ear to the Ground is a Manchester-based creative agency founded in 2003 that develops marketing campaigns and brand activations for clients in sports, gaming, and entertainment. The agency's core offering centers on end-to-end campaign creation — concept development, influencer and talent partnerships (e.g., Louis Theroux, Angry Ginge), gamified retail mechanics (such as InPost parcel locker codes deployed across four UK cities), and earned-media amplification (e.g., coverage in GRM Daily). Its client roster is concentrated in sportswear and athletic retail: it has collaborated with Nike and JD on the Air Max 95 OG Neon product drop during Air Max Month, and has supported SportShoes.com in marketing team build-out.

The agency's operating model is that of a typical mid-sized creative shop: project-based and retainer fee arrangements with enterprise brands, executed by an 11-50 person team under founder-led creative direction (Jonathan Drape as Founder & Live Director; Steve Smith as founder & Chairman). Distribution of campaign assets flows through client retail networks (JD), partner infrastructure (InPost lockers), and earned media rather than proprietary channels. The agency has demonstrated reach beyond its home market through international sneaker and culture community engagement, though its stated primary geography is the United Kingdom.

Revenue model is fee-for-service: pricing is not publicly disclosed, and no revenue, funding, ownership, or financial details are available in the source data. The firm's described competitive differentiation rests on culturally resonant creative, multi-city gamified physical-digital activation capability, and established relationships with tier-1 UK sportswear brands. There is no evidence of proprietary technology, AI/ML systems, or platform architecture beyond standard creative agency tooling.

Name

Ear to the Ground

Website

https://eartotheground.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ear to the Ground is a Manchester-based creative agency that develops campaigns, gamified retail activations, and influencer marketing for sports, gaming, and entertainment brands, including Nike, JD, and SportShoes.com.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Manchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Ear to the Ground is a Manchester-based creative agency that develops end-to-end marketing campaigns for sports, gaming, and entertainment brands. Its services include creative concept development, influencer and celebrity partnerships, gamified retail activations, and earned media amplification across physical and digital channels.

Product overview

Ear to the Ground is a creative agency, not a software or product company. It operates as a single unified service offering focused on creative campaign development for the sports, gaming, and entertainment sectors. The agency creates marketing campaigns and gamified activations on behalf of clients, such as the Nike Air Max 95 OG Neon campaign featuring Louis Theroux and influencers, which included in-store and location-based activations using InPost parcel lockers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Creative Services for Sports, Gaming & Entertainment

Quantifiable outcome

• Global engagement beyond UK with coverage from GRM Daily and international sneaker communities

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NikecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 March 2026Nike collaborated with Ear to the Ground and JD on the Air Max 95 OG Neon campaign as part of Air Max Month. Ear to the Ground created the campaign featuring Louis Theroux and influencers, with the product drop occurring on March 5, 2026.
• JDcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 March 2026JD partnered with Ear to the Ground and Nike to launch the Air Max 95 OG Neon campaign, serving as the retail distribution channel for the product drop.
• InPostminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 March 2026InPost provided parcel locker locations across Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow, and London for the gamified activation where consumers could scan codes to unlock exclusive prizes including pairs of trainers.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Mother: Independent creative agency with London HQ. Directly comparable as a mid-sized creative shop producing culturally resonant campaigns for global brands, with a similar project-and-retainer model.
• Anomaly: Independent creative agency working with sportswear and consumer brands on integrated campaigns. Comparable in scale and independent-agency positioning serving enterprise clients with culturally-driven creative.
• 160over90: Creative agency within Endeavor focused on sports, entertainment, and culture-driven brand work. Directly comparable in sport/entertainment creative services and brand activation for major rights holders.
• M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment: UK-based sport and entertainment creative agency within the M&C Saatchi network. Comparable as a sports/entertainment-focused creative shop serving brand and rights-holder clients.
• Octagon: Sports marketing agency producing campaigns, activations, and influencer programs for global sports brands. Directly comparable in sport-focused creative services and brand activation.
• 72andSunny: Global creative agency known for sportswear and entertainment brand work (including Nike-adjacent accounts). Comparable offering in culturally resonant, multi-channel campaign development for sports and entertainment clients.
• Amplify: Independent creative agency specializing in brand experience, content, and culture-led campaigns. Comparable in mid-size independent agency profile targeting brands seeking culturally resonant creative work.

Broad incumbents

• R/GA: Global creative innovation agency with sports and entertainment brand experience. Comparable in integrated campaign development but with substantially larger scale and digital product capabilities.
• Wieden+Kennedy: Long-standing Nike creative partner and global independent agency. Comparable in creative services for sportswear but operates at significantly larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH): Established UK creative agency with sportswear and entertainment brand experience. Comparable in independent creative agency model but broader portfolio and larger scale than Ear to the Ground.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/eartotheground

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 Ear to the Ground