What Without does

Without (legally Without Studio) is a privately-held strategic branding agency headquartered in Clerkenwell, London, with a second office in Dublin. Founded in 2005 by co-founders Philip Koh (Strategy Director) and Roly Grant (Creative Director), the firm employs 43 people and has operated continuously for 21 years, specializing in brand strategy, identity design, and brand experience for lifestyle brands across food and drink, hospitality, travel, luxury, wellness, FMCG, and retail. Its client roster includes long-running retained engagements with household-name UK brands such as Third Space, Wahaca, Rosa's Thai, The Wolseley Hospitality Group, Kelly Loves, and The Thinking Traveller, alongside multi-project enterprise accounts with Sodexo (Modern Recipe, The Kitcheneers, One & All) and Airport Dimensions (Sleepover, The Club).

The agency organizes its offering around four core phases — Brand Insight (research and discovery), Brand Strategy & Story (positioning, narrative, naming), Brand Identity (visual and verbal design), and Brand Experience (deployment across digital, physical, packaging, interior, and campaign touchpoints) — supported by specialist modules including website design, packaging, copywriting, photography art direction, social media direction, and employer branding. Technology is not a core competency: digital build work is executed with external development partners such as Nevado, and the firm competes on creative judgment and category-defining positioning rather than proprietary platforms or tooling. Notable work has been recognized by the Design Business Association with a Design Effectiveness Grand Prix and Gold Award for Modern Recipe, and a DBA Design Effectiveness Award for The Kitcheneers.

Without operates a B2B professional services revenue model, charging on a project basis for strategic brand engagements with retainers on multi-year accounts. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and all new business is sourced through website inquiries ([email protected]) and direct outreach. The go-to-market is enterprise field sales supported by an active content-marketing funnel — case studies, interviews with sector leaders, and earned media in the Financial Times and Jay Rayner reviews — and the agency has expanded selectively into international end markets (US via Sodexo and Airport Dimensions, Chile via Melt, Europe via Kelly Loves) without external funding, remaining founder-owned throughout.

Name

Without

Legal name

Without Studio

Website

https://without.studio

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Without is a London- and Dublin-based strategic branding agency, founded in 2005, that designs brand strategy, identity, and experience for lifestyle brands across food and drink, hospitality, travel, luxury, wellness, FMCG, and retail sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Branding and Design Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (541810), Advertising Agencies (54181)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Brand Strategy & Positioning (BPAFAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Employer Brand Strategy & Talent Branding (BPAFAEAH), Packaging & Brand Identity Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAN), Naming & Verbal Identity (Taglines, Messaging) (MPAAAEAB)

Keywords

• Strategic branding agency
• Brand identity design
• Brand strategy consulting
• Visual identity services
• Brand experience design

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Strategic Branding Services: Without generates revenue through project-based engagements for brand strategy, brand identity, and brand experience design. Projects typically include brand insight research, strategy development, visual identity creation, and implementation support across digital and physical touchpoints.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Without is a strategic branding agency that helps lifestyle brands stand out in crowded markets through four integrated service phases: Brand Insight (research and discovery), Brand Strategy & Story (positioning, narrative, naming, and architecture), Brand Identity (visual and verbal design), and Brand Experience (deployment across physical and digital touchpoints). Engagements are delivered through supporting modules including website design, packaging design, campaigns, copywriting, photography, social media direction, interior direction, and employer branding.

Product overview

Without is a strategic branding agency offering a comprehensive suite of brand development services organized into four core phases: Brand Insight (research and discovery), Brand Strategy & Story (positioning and narrative), Brand Identity (visual and verbal design), and Brand Experience (deployment across physical and digital touchpoints). The agency operates as a unified service offering rather than a modular SaaS platform, with each engagement tailored to client needs. Services are delivered through specialized modules including website design, packaging design, campaigns, copywriting, photography, social media direction, and interior direction. The agency's approach is characterized by joy, humanity, and emotion, and has resulted in measurable client outcomes including revenue increases, design effectiveness awards, and business growth.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brand Insight

Quantifiable outcome

• Third Space achieved 30% increase in revenue per member
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers30 records

Segments6 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.

• NevadocoreTechnology or IntegrationDevelopment and integration partner for Peligoni digital transformation project, including new website, custom booking flow, and integrated guest hub. Nevado led backend build while Without led UX and UI design.
• SodexocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing partnership across multiple brand projects including Modern Recipe (corporate catering rebrand), The Kitcheneers (school food brand), and One & All (US college dining brand). Multiple DBA Design Effectiveness Awards won through this partnership.
• Airport DimensionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership for airport hospitality branding including Sleepover (new sleep station category) and The Club (airport lounge brand refresh). Multiple touchpoints including physical spaces, digital platforms, and brand systems for global rollout.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Pentagram: Independent multi-disciplinary design studio with a partner-led model; one of the most recognised strategic branding agencies globally, competing directly with Without for lifestyle, hospitality and consumer brand identity engagements.
• Ragged Edge: London-based strategic branding agency that combines strategy, identity and naming for challenger lifestyle, food & drink and retail brands; very comparable niche and creative approach to Without.
• DesignStudio: Boutique strategic branding studio known for category-defining identity work for lifestyle, hospitality and travel brands (e.g. Airbnb, Premier Inn). Highly comparable client mix and brand-led approach to Without.
• B&B Studio: Independent London branding and packaging design agency with a strong focus on food, drink and lifestyle brands. Direct competitor for the same target verticals Without serves.
• Koto: Independent strategic branding studio with offices in London and elsewhere, focused on brand strategy and identity for challenger and lifestyle brands. Direct competitor for premium brand identity assignments.
• Wolff Olins: Global strategic branding agency that builds brand strategy, identity and experience for major consumer and lifestyle brands; a primary competitor to Without in the UK strategic branding category.
• Bulletproof: Independent strategic brand agency with offices in London and other markets, working across food, hospitality and lifestyle categories with a brand strategy and identity model similar to Without.
• Mother Design: Brand identity and design arm of Mother, a globally recognised creative company; competes for lifestyle, food and hospitality brand identity and experience work comparable to Without.

Broad incumbents

• Landor & Fitch: Global brand consulting and design network within WPP, offering brand strategy and identity at scale. A broader incumbent competing with Without for enterprise brand assignments.

Others

• Unilever (in-house brand design): Major FMCG owner with sizeable in-house brand and design operations; an adjacent comparator that increasingly insources branding, shaping the demand environment for agencies like Without.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/without-studio
• Instagraminstagram.com/withoutstudio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Without