The One Show
The One Show, a nonprofit annual creative awards competition operated by The One Club for Creativity, honors advertising, design, and creative professionals globally through tiered Pencil awards judged by 300+ leaders, monetized primarily via entry fees, with 2026 expansions into indie agencies, creator content, and AI-powered feedback.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1970
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The One Show does
The One Show is a nonprofit annual creative awards competition operated by The One Club for Creativity, a New York-based 501(c)-equivalent organization headquartered at 450 W 31st Street. For more than 50 years, it has recognized excellence in advertising, design, and adjacent creative disciplines through tiered Pencil awards (Gold, Silver, Bronze), specialty Pencils (Crystal, Best of Show, Fusion for DEI, Green for environmental impact, SDG for UN Sustainable Development Goals, Penta for long-running agency-brand partnerships), and the Creative Marketer award for senior brand leaders. Entries are submitted through a web-based platform at oneshow.org and judged by a panel of more than 300 global creative leaders, with winners announced annually during Creative Week in New York City each May.
The business is built on a tiered, deadline-driven entry fee model with five price tiers (Super Early through Final) between October 2025 and February 2026, plus select free entry categories (Best Use of TikTok) and specialty fees ranging from $750 (Green Pencil Final) to $1,100 (Creative Marketer Final). In 2026, the platform added a dedicated independent-agency competition (The One Show Indies) with reduced fees, a new Creator Content discipline, and an optional AI-powered jury feedback add-on (Award Intelligence) priced at 10% of entry fees. The product surface spans a global online entry system supporting English and Chinese, an in-person awards ceremony, and a 50+ year winners archive that feeds The One Show Global Creative Rankings. All winners receive complimentary membership in The One Club for Creativity, which also operates sibling competitions (ADC, TDC, ADCE, ONE Asia, Young Ones) and uses entry-fee surpluses to fund education, gender equality, diversity and inclusion, and professional development programs for the global creative community.
The One Show firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The One Show
- Legal name
- The One Club for Creativity, Inc.
- Website
- https://oneshow.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1970
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The One Show, a nonprofit annual creative awards competition operated by The One Club for Creativity, honors advertising, design, and creative professionals globally through tiered Pencil awards judged by 300+ leaders, monetized primarily via entry fees, with 2026 expansions into indie agencies, creator content, and AI-powered feedback.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The One Show industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Creative Industry Awards
- NAICS
- Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising (7310), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Virtual Awards Ceremonies & Competitions (Judging, Voting) (MPAGAOAN)
Keywords
Where The One Show is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The One Show business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Entry Fees: The One Show charges per-entry fees that vary by deadline tier and category. Entry fees are the primary revenue stream. The organization is a nonprofit, and all entry fees support The One Club for Creativity's education, gender equality, diversity and inclusion, and professional development programs.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Super Early Deadline (Oct 31, 2025) — lowest entry fee tier |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Early Deadline (Dec 12, 2025) — second tier |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Regular Deadline (Jan 23, 2026) — standard tier |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Extended Deadline (Feb 6, 2026) — higher tier |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Final Deadline (Feb 20, 2026) — highest tier |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Indies Super Early Deadline — $475 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Indies Final Deadline — $525 |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Best Use of TikTok — Free |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | AI-Powered Jury Feedback — 10% of entry fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
The One Show product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The One Show is an annual advertising and creative awards competition operated by The One Club for Creativity. Agencies, brands, independent shops, and production studios submit creative work through a web-based entry platform for peer judging by over 300 global creative leaders, with winners receiving Pencils (Gold, Silver, Bronze) and specialty awards (Crystal, Best of Show, Fusion, Green, SDG, Penta) and recognition during Creative Week in New York City. Entry fees fund the nonprofit's education, gender equality, diversity & inclusion, and professional development programs.
Product overview
The One Show is an advertising awards competition organized by The One Club for Creativity, featuring a portfolio of award products including Gold/Silver/Bronze Pencils, specialty Pencils (Crystal Pencil, Best of Show Pencil, Fusion Pencil, Green Pencil, SDG Pencil, Penta Pencil), and the Creative Marketer Award. Services include an entry submission platform and the new Award Intelligence AI-powered feedback tool. In 2026, new offerings include The One Show Indies competition track for independent agencies and the Creator Content discipline. The competition spans disciplines across advertising, design, digital, and emerging creative categories.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Pencil Awards (Gold, Silver, Bronze) Three-tier creative award (Gold, Silver, Bronze) recognizing outstanding creative work submitted by agencies, brands, and creators across multiple disciplines in The One Show annual competition.
- Crystal Pencil Specialty award given to Best of Discipline winners, Best of Non-Profit, and the year's top-ranked agencies, production studios, and networks.
- Best of Show Pencil The highest honor of The One Show, awarded to the single most defining idea of the year across all categories and disciplines.
- Fusion Pencil Specialty award recognizing creative excellence that advances diversity, equity, and inclusion, with criteria covering team diversity behind the scenes and authentic representation in the work itself.
- Green Pencil Specialty award recognizing creative work with measurable environmental impact across awareness, product design, and eco-friendly production.
- Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Pencil Specialty award honoring work addressing at least one of the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals with proven measurable impact, scalability, and behavioral change.
- Penta Pencil Specialty award recognizing enduring excellence in brand-agency partnerships of five or more years, awarded jointly to the agency and brand team.
- Creative Marketer Award Award honoring a senior brand leader (CMO or top marketing executive) whose vision and bravery elevated creativity as a core priority for the brand.
- The One Show Indies A dedicated competition track for independent creative shops with leaner categories, indie-focused deadlines, lighter entry fees ($475 Super Early, $525 Final), and a maximum of 10 entries per company.
- Entry Submission Platform Web-based platform at oneshow.org for agencies, brands, and creators to create accounts, submit creative work entries, upload media, manage credits, and pay entry fees across multiple disciplines.
- Award Intelligence (AI-Powered Jury Feedback) AI-powered feedback service that synthesizes Final Discussion transcripts, official category descriptions, Jury President criteria, and entry descriptions to provide entrants with structured, anonymous insights into how their work performed in the jury room.
- Best Use of TikTok Category A free-to-enter competition category sponsored by TikTok that recognizes a brand's exceptional use of TikTok's native behaviors, creative tools, and storytelling styles.
Companies that use The One Show
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The One Show technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature1 record
The One Show partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- TikTokcoreTikTok is the sponsor of the 'Best Use of TikTok' category (SM_21) in The One Show 2026. The category recognizes a brand's exceptional use of TikTok, embracing the platform's native behaviors, creative tools, and storytelling styles. The category is free to enter (no entry fees), making it accessible for any brand or agency to submit TikTok-native creative work. This is a GTM partnership where TikTok provides brand exposure and category sponsorship while The One Show provides an authoritative awards platform for TikTok-focused creative work.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
The One Show competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- New York Festivals Advertising Awards: Long-running international advertising awards competition with categories across film, print, digital, and outdoor. Regional competitor also headquartered in New York; competes for agency entry budgets in the same advertising discipline categories as The One Show.
- Clio Awards: Long-established global creative awards program recognizing excellence in advertising, entertainment, and design. Direct competitor with overlapping disciplines, tiered entry fees, and similar focus on agency brand prestige and rankings.
- Effie Awards: Global marketing effectiveness awards honoring work that demonstrates measurable business impact alongside creative excellence. Direct competitor for brand marketer and agency attention, with particular overlap on The One Show's Creative Marketer and effectiveness-related categories.
- Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity: The most prestigious global advertising and creative awards festival, held annually in Cannes, France. Direct competitor for advertising agency entry budgets, brand prestige, and creative leader jury participation; both operate annual cycle competitions with tiered deadline pricing.
- D&AD Awards: UK-based creative awards organization issuing the iconic Yellow Pencil across advertising, design, and craft disciplines. Direct competitor serving the same global agency and brand client base with similar judging integrity standards and annual entry cycles.
- ADC Europe (ADCE): European advertising and design awards program operated as a sibling to The One Show within The One Club for Creativity. Sibling competition with similar entry fee structure and judging integrity standards; serves the same European agency segment.
- The Webby Awards: Annual awards program from the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences recognizing excellence in digital creativity across websites, advertising, media, and apps. Direct competitor for digital and interactive creative agency submissions, particularly relevant as The One Show expands into Gaming and Creative Use of AI categories.
- London International Awards (LIA): Global creative awards program recognizing excellence across advertising, digital, design, and craft. Direct competitor with similar annual cycle, tiered entry fees, and agency ranking systems; competes for the same brand and agency client base.
- ADC Annual Awards: Art Directors Club global awards for craft and design excellence, operated as a sibling program within The One Club for Creativity (parent of The One Show). Operates the same digital entry and judging infrastructure; comparable peer for entry volume and agency participation metrics.
Emerging players
- The Drum Awards for the Digital Industries: Industry trade publication awards recognizing excellence in digital marketing, agency culture, and B2B creative work. Emerging competitor in adjacent categories, particularly relevant to The One Show's Creator Content and digital discipline expansion.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The One Show social profiles
Digital presenceThe One Show financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The One Show leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
The One Show subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
The One Show funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The One Show 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 One Show
What does The One Show do?
The One Show is an annual advertising and creative awards competition operated by The One Club for Creativity. Agencies, brands, independent shops, and production studios submit creative work through a web-based entry platform for peer judging by over 300 global creative leaders, with winners receiving Pencils (Gold, Silver, Bronze) and specialty awards (Crystal, Best of Show, Fusion, Green, SDG, Penta) and recognition during Creative Week in New York City. Entry fees fund the nonprofit's education, gender equality, diversity & inclusion, and professional development programs.
Is The One Show a public or private company?
The One Show is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was The One Show founded?
The One Show was founded in 1970. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The One Show based?
The One Show is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does The One Show make money?
One revenue line is on record: entry Fees.
Who are The One Show's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are New York Festivals Advertising Awards, Clio Awards, Effie Awards, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, D&AD Awards, ADC Europe (ADCE), The Webby Awards, London International Awards (LIA) and ADC Annual Awards. The Drum Awards for the Digital Industries is listed as an emerging player.
Does The One Show have an API?
No public API is recorded for The One Show.
What industry is The One Show in?
The One Show's product category is Creative Industry Awards. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGAOAN, Virtual Awards Ceremonies & Competitions (Judging, Voting). Its NAICS code is 56192 and its SIC code is 7310.