The Y
The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based, 16-person B2B brand experience design agency serving enterprise clients such as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Bosch, and NIVEA with integrated strategy, spatial, event, and digital design services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersHamburg, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The Y does
The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based B2B brand experience design agency operating as a private German limited company (GmbH) registered at Amtsgericht Hamburg under HRB 160337. The company was founded by Benjamin Rattke, who serves as Founder and CEO and is the listed director. Headquartered at Barmbeker Str. 183, 22299 Hamburg, the firm employs approximately 16 people and supports remote work flexibility.
The agency delivers end-to-end brand experience projects across four service pillars: Experience Strategy (research, insights, design strategy, narrative, consultancy); Permanent Spaces (showrooms, exhibitions, retail, point of sale); Temporary Spaces (trade fairs, pop-ups, roadshows, brand activations); and Digital Design (UX/UI, digital experiences, app, motion design, content production). Clients are large enterprises predominantly in Germany, with marquee engagements for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (IAA, Caravan Salon, Wacken Open Air), Bosch (Küchenmeile showroom), NIVEA, Ritter Sport, Olympus, Biontech, MOIA, Volocopter, congstar, Inditex, and Lidl. Revenue is generated through project-based professional services engagements acquired via direct enterprise sales and event-driven opportunities; pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company operates without external funding, parent company, or disclosed proprietary technology platform, and is GDPR/BDSG compliant.
The Y firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Y
- Legal name
- The Y GmbH
- Website
- https://the-y.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based, 16-person B2B brand experience design agency serving enterprise clients such as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Bosch, and NIVEA with integrated strategy, spatial, event, and digital design services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Y industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Brand Experience Design Services
- NAICS
- Interior Design Services (541410), Industrial Design Services (541420)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Brand Experience (BX) & Service Design (BPAFAEAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Exhibition, Retail & Experiential Design (BPAHAKAL)
Keywords
Where The Y is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Hamburg
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Y business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Brand Experience Design Services: Professional services revenue generated through project-based engagements including experience strategy, permanent spaces (showrooms, exhibitions, retail), temporary spaces (trade fairs, pop-ups, roadshows), and digital design (UX/UI, experiences, app, motion design, content production).
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
The Y product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based brand experience design agency that designs and executes contemporary brand worlds for enterprise clients. Its portfolio integrates Experience Strategy (research, insights, narrative, consultancy), Permanent Spaces (showrooms, exhibitions, retail, point of sale), Temporary Spaces (trade fairs, pop-ups, roadshows, brand activations), and Digital Design (UX/UI, experiences, app, motion design, content production). Deliverables span physical installations and digital assets delivered through project-based engagements with major brands such as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Bosch, NIVEA, and Ritter Sport.
Product overview
The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based brand experience design agency offering a holistic portfolio of services that integrates strategy, design, and architecture. Their core offerings span Experience Strategy (research, insights, design strategy, narrative, consultancy), Permanent Spaces (showroom, exhibition, retail, point of sale), Temporary Spaces (tradefair, pop-ups, roadshow, brand activations), and Digital Design (UX/UI, experiences, app, motion design, content production). The agency serves major brands including Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, NIVEA, Bosch, Ritter Sport, and others, delivering comprehensive brand experiences from concept to execution.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Experience Strategy Strategic consulting service for enterprise brand clients, covering research, insights, design strategy, narrative development, and consultancy to guide brand experience creation.
- Permanent Spaces Design and execution of permanent physical environments for enterprise brands, including showrooms, exhibitions, retail spaces, and point-of-sale locations.
- Temporary Spaces Design and implementation of temporary brand experiences for enterprise clients, including trade fairs, pop-ups, roadshows, and brand activations.
- Digital Design Digital design services for enterprise clients, covering UX/UI, digital experiences, app development, motion design, and content production.
Companies that use The Y
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
The Y technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
The Y partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Y competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- KMS TEAM: Hamburg-based brand experience design agency offering spatial, communication, and digital design for major brands. Directly comparable to The Y on geography, size-band, and integrated brand-experience offering.
- VOK DAMS: Wuppertal-based event and live-marketing agency serving global enterprise clients. Comparable on the events/trade-fair side of The Y's portfolio.
- Meiré und Meiré: Cologne-based creative agency blending brand, spatial, and digital design. Comparable as a competing German boutique in brand and experience design.
- Milla & Partner: Stuttgart-based agency creating brand experiences, exhibitions, and events. Comparable on the integrated strategy-plus-execution offering for major German enterprise clients.
- Atelier Markgraph: Frankfurt-based brand experience and communication design agency working across exhibitions, museums, and corporate spaces. Comparable as a German boutique specializing in experience-led spatial and brand design.
- facts and fiction: Cologne-based brand experience agency delivering trade fairs, exhibitions, and brand worlds for enterprise clients. Directly comparable on services mix and German mid-market agency positioning.
- TRIAD Berlin: Berlin-based brand experience agency working in live communication, exhibition, and content. Comparable as a competing German boutique in the same experiential design category.
Broad incumbents
- Serviceplan Group: Europe's largest independent agency group, headquartered in Munich. Competes for the same enterprise experience briefs but as part of a much wider full-service portfolio.
- Jung von Matt: Large Hamburg-headquartered creative agency network. Overlaps with The Y on enterprise brand and experience work but operates at materially larger scale across broader communications.
- Scholz & Friends: Hamburg-rooted creative agency group with brand and activation capabilities. Comparable on German enterprise client base but at substantially larger scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Y social profiles
Digital presenceThe Y compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
The Y financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Y leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles14 records
The Y funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Y M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Y
What does The Y do?
The Y GmbH is a Hamburg-based brand experience design agency that designs and executes contemporary brand worlds for enterprise clients. Its portfolio integrates Experience Strategy (research, insights, narrative, consultancy), Permanent Spaces (showrooms, exhibitions, retail, point of sale), Temporary Spaces (trade fairs, pop-ups, roadshows, brand activations), and Digital Design (UX/UI, experiences, app, motion design, content production). Deliverables span physical installations and digital assets delivered through project-based engagements with major brands such as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Bosch, NIVEA, and Ritter Sport.
Is The Y a public or private company?
The Y is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Y founded?
The Y was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The Y based?
The Y is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does The Y make money?
One revenue line is on record: brand Experience Design Services.
Who are The Y's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are KMS TEAM, VOK DAMS, Meiré und Meiré, Milla & Partner, Atelier Markgraph, facts and fiction and TRIAD Berlin. Broad incumbents are Serviceplan Group, Jung von Matt and Scholz & Friends.
Does The Y have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Y.
What industry is The Y in?
The Y's product category is Brand Experience Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAFAEAI, Brand Experience (BX) & Service Design, with a secondary code of BPAHAKAL, Exhibition, Retail & Experiential Design. Its NAICS code is 541410.