Clanin Creative

What Clanin Creative does

Clanin Creative is an independent, founder-led design agency founded in 2015 and headquartered in the historic Orpheum Theatre in downtown Champaign, Illinois. The firm operates with a core team of six specialists covering brand strategy, web development, graphic design, video production, and project management, and delivers brand identity, digital, and strategy services to small and mid-sized businesses, government entities, educational institutions, healthcare providers, nonprofits, and a handful of larger enterprise clients across Central Illinois and select national engagements.

Service delivery is organized around three core offerings — Brand Identity Services (logo, brand guidelines, environmental branding, signage, and collateral), Digital Services (website design, video production, e-commerce, email marketing, and dedicated SEO), and Strategy Services (brand audits, positioning, rebranding strategy, social media, and training) — plus two structured lines: monthly marketing workshops and a lower-priced Brand Jumpstart Package delivered through a channel partnership with the Illinois SBDC at Champaign County EDC.

The business operates on a professional services revenue model combining project-based engagements with multi-year retainer arrangements; pricing is custom by scope and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, centered on local discovery meetings, monthly workshops, and community partnerships, with a portfolio site, organic social, a monthly newsletter, and earned media (including 2024 Illinois State Flag Redesign finalist coverage) supporting lead generation in the Champaign-Urbana market.

Name

Clanin Creative

Legal name

Clanin Creative

Website

https://clanincreative.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Clanin Creative is an independent, six-person design agency in Champaign, Illinois, founded in 2015, offering brand identity, web design, video production, and SEO services to small and mid-sized businesses, government, education, and nonprofit clients across Central Illinois.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Creative and Brand Design Services

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430)

akta.pro primary industry

Naming & Verbal Identity (Taglines, Messaging) (MPAAAEAB)

Keywords

• Brand identity design
• Website design services
• Video production services
• Graphic design agency
• Search engine optimization

Headquarters

HQ city

Champaign

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, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Creative Services: Professional design agency services including branding, web design, environmental branding, video production, photography, and graphic design delivered as project-based engagements or retainer arrangements.
2. Workshops and Training: Free and paid marketing workshops delivered in partnership with Illinois SBDC at Champaign County EDC covering digital marketing, branding, and website optimization topics.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Clanin Creative is an independent design agency that provides brand identity development, website design, video production, photography, and SEO and digital marketing services. Offerings are organized into Brand Identity Services, Digital Services, and Strategy Services, with a specialized Brand Jumpstart Package and workshops delivered in partnership with the Illinois SBDC. Engagements are delivered as custom projects or retainer arrangements.

Product overview

Clanin Creative is an independent design agency offering a unified suite of creative, digital, and strategic services organized around brand transformation. The core offerings comprise Brand Identity Services (logo design, brand guidelines, environmental branding, signage), Digital Services (website design, custom video production, e-commerce, email marketing, SEO), and Strategy Services (brand audits, positioning, rebranding, social media strategy). Specialized offerings include dedicated SEO Services, marketing workshops offered in partnership with the Illinois SBDC, and a structured Brand Jumpstart Package for small businesses. The portfolio spans branding, environmental design, web design, graphic design, photography, video production, and social media, all delivered through a core team of designers, developers, and strategists.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brand Identity Services
• Digital Services
• Strategy Services
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Services
• Marketing Workshops
• Brand Jumpstart Package

Quantifiable outcome

• 211% increase in new/first time website visitors; 1851% increase in traffic from Facebook referrals; 77,500 social media accounts reached for Habitat for Humanity campaign

Named customers20 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Illinois Small Business Development Center at Champaign County EDCcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOngoing partnership to deliver marketing workshops and the Brand Jumpstart Package to small businesses in Champaign County. Workshops cover digital marketing, branding, social media advertising, Google updates, email marketing, and website optimization topics.
• Champaign Center PartnershipminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on The Heart of it All campaign to promote downtown Champaign businesses and attract visitors back after the pandemic.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mucca: NYC-based branding and design studio providing identity, packaging, and digital design services. Comparable independent creative-agency model with overlapping offerings in brand identity and graphic design.
• Anchour: Maine-based branding and digital agency delivering identity, web design, video, and SEO to small and mid-sized businesses. Closely comparable in service breadth, target customer, and boutique-team size.
• Brolik: Philadelphia-based full-service digital agency offering branding, web design, and video production to mid-market clients. Closely comparable in service mix, target customer, and boutique-agency positioning relative to Clanin Creative.
• Bond Branding & Design: New York branding and design agency offering identity, packaging, and brand strategy for consumer and SMB clients. Comparable boutique service model and creative scope to Clanin Creative.
• Pivot Creative: Independent creative agency offering branding, web design, and marketing services to SMB and mid-market clients. Overlapping service offering and customer segment make it a comparable boutique peer.
• Three Over Seven: Independent branding and design agency offering brand identity and digital design services. Similar creative-services positioning and boutique-agency scale as Clanin Creative.

Broad incumbents

• Smart Design: Established design consultancy offering brand, digital, and product design services across multiple verticals. Comparable in branding and digital offerings but significantly larger in scale and global footprint.
• Pentagram: Major independently owned design firm with deep identity, branding, and digital design capabilities. Competes for high-profile branding work but operates nationally and globally at a scale far exceeding Clanin.
• Siegel+Gale: Large global branding firm offering brand strategy, identity, and experience design as part of a broader consultancy portfolio. Competes with Clanin in identity and brand strategy but operates at a far larger scale and enterprise-only tier.
• LPK: Global branding and design agency serving consumer packaged goods clients with brand identity, packaging, and digital design. Overlaps with Clanin's packaging and brand work but serves much larger enterprise accounts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/clanincreative
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/clanin-creative
• Instagraminstagram.com/clanin_creative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Clanin Creative