The Adshop

What The Adshop does

The Adshop is a privately held, founder-operated full-service marketing agency based in South Africa, founded circa 2015 and operating under theadshop.co.za. The firm delivers an integrated suite of marketing and creative services — including branding, digital marketing management, dynamic QR code campaigns, large-format signage and print, graphic design, and cinematography (drone photography and video production) — from conceptualization through execution under one in-house team of creatives, designers and developers. The company is run by Ricky Choles and Gustav Collins, with no external investors, parent entity, or subsidiary structure disclosed beyond an affiliated sister company, Vida One Design.

The business operates on a professional services revenue model combining project-based work and retainer arrangements, with quote-based, multi-year engagements and no publicly disclosed pricing. Its go-to-market is sales-led and direct: prospective clients engage through the website (call-back requests, meeting bookings), phone (082/071 South African prefixes), or email ([email protected]), with no reseller, distributor or marketplace channels. Distribution channels are domestic only, targeting SMB and mid-market clients across retail (notably SPAR across ten stores), agriculture (game breeders), hospitality (game reserves) and food (convenience retail) verticals. The marketing footprint is an owned YouTube channel plus Facebook, Instagram and Twitter profiles functioning as a top-of-funnel showcase of client work.

The technology stack is intentionally light: there is no proprietary platform, no API offering, no SDK and no AI/ML capability disclosed. The single technical differentiator is a dynamic QR code generation, management and tracking tool used to run end-to-end QR code marketing campaigns. Certification, patent, award and regulatory action data are all absent, and the company carries no disclosed revenue, headcount figure, or funding history beyond its operating website and active client engagements.

Name

The Adshop

Legal name

The Adshop

Website

https://theadshop.co.za

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Adshop is a privately held, founder-operated full-service marketing agency based in South Africa, founded circa 2015. It delivers branding, digital marketing, QR code campaigns, signage and print, graphic design, and cinematography services to SMB and mid-market clients across retail, agriculture, hospitality and food verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marketing Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (54181), Indoor and Outdoor Display Advertising (54185)

SIC

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

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAFAAAN

Marketing Technology, AdTech & MarTech Services

Business & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Full-Service Advertising Agencies

SECONDARYBPAFAAAO

Promotions, Shopper & Retail Marketing (Sales Promotion, POS)

Business & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Full-Service Advertising Agencies

SECONDARYMPAAAAAH

Shopper/Commerce Creative Agencies (Retail & Marketplace Creative)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Advertising, Marketing & PR Services/Advertising Agencies (Full-Service/Creative)

SECONDARYBPAFAMAF

Point-of-Sale (POS) & In-Store Promotion Services

Business & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Promotional Products & Sales Promotion Services

Keywords

• Marketing agency services
• Branding and design
• Digital marketing solutions
• Signage printing services
• Graphic design services

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

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, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Marketing Services: Project-based and retainer arrangements for comprehensive marketing services including branding, digital marketing, signage/print, graphic design, cinematography, and social media management. Services delivered from conceptualization through execution under one roof.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Adshop is a full-service marketing agency that delivers branding, digital marketing, QR code marketing, signage and print, graphic design, and cinematography services to businesses. Services are provided under one roof by an in-house team of creatives, designers, and developers, covering the full lifecycle from conceptualization through strategy and execution. Engagements are delivered as project-based or retainer arrangements tailored to each client's requirements.

Product overview

The Adshop is a full-service marketing agency offering an integrated suite of marketing solutions. Rather than a software platform with discrete modules, the company provides a coordinated portfolio of creative and marketing services delivered by an in-house team of designers, developers, and creatives. The core offerings include Full Service Agency (strategy and innovation), Digital Marketing, QR Code Marketing (with dynamic generation and tracking tools), Signage and Print, Graphic Design, and Cinematography. Services are unified under one roof, covering the complete lifecycle from conceptualization through photography, design, social media, videography, printing, signage, and multimedia marketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Full Service Agency

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

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.

• Vida One DesignminorOthersSister company referenced on the website as a related design entity (vidaonedesign.co.za). Visually promoted alongside The Adshop's social media links. Nature of the relationship appears to be affiliated companies under common ownership rather than a formal commercial partnership.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Penquin: South African integrated marketing agency offering creative, digital, and shopper marketing services to mid-market and enterprise clients; directly comparable in service mix and mid-market positioning to The Adshop.
• Brave Group: South African integrated marketing agency offering full-service advertising, digital, and PR solutions across a similar SMB-to-enterprise client mix and serving as a directly comparable independent agency peer to The Adshop.
• King James Group: Award-winning South African creative agency offering integrated advertising, digital, and content services across enterprise and mid-market clients, with a comparable full-service, South African-market positioning to The Adshop.
• The Jupiter Drawing Room: Long-established South African creative advertising agency providing full-service brand, digital, and integrated marketing services; comparable independent South African agency with overlapping service mix and target market.
• Hello Computer: South African digital-first marketing agency (Publicis-affiliated) offering creative, digital, and integrated marketing services to enterprise and mid-market clients in the same geography as The Adshop, with overlapping digital/social capabilities.
• M&C Saatchi Abel: South African arm of the M&C Saatchi Group providing full-service advertising, brand strategy, and creative services to enterprise and mid-market clients in the same geography and overlapping category as The Adshop.

Broad incumbents

• TBWA South Africa: South African arm of the global TBWA network offering advertising, brand strategy, and integrated marketing services to enterprise clients; broader network resources but overlapping service categories and target market with The Adshop.
• Ogilvy South Africa: WPP-owned global advertising network operating in South Africa with full-service advertising, digital, PR, and brand strategy capabilities; broader portfolio than The Adshop but overlapping core services and competing for the same enterprise clients.
• Publicis Groupe Africa: Global advertising network with significant South African operations (including Hello Computer and Publicis Machine) offering integrated marketing services broader than The Adshop but with overlapping client base and service categories.
• DDB South Africa: Omnicom-owned global advertising network operating in South Africa, providing creative, digital, and integrated marketing services to enterprise clients with overlapping capabilities and competing for similar client mandates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/adshopthe
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCwQqnoTZwbiJa5cFjRyOzGA
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheOnlyAdShop
• Instagraminstagram.com/the.adshop
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-adshop

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 The Adshop