Big Active
Big Active is a London-based creative consultancy (founded 1988) providing art direction, graphic design, content production, brand identity, and artist representation services to enterprise clients in music, fashion, luxury, beauty, and media, backed by a roster of 40+ represented image makers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1988
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Big Active does
Big Active is a London-based creative consultancy founded in 1988, specializing in art direction, graphic design, content production, brand identity, and artist representation. The firm is organized around five interconnected service pillars — Music Art Direction & Design, Artist Representation, Content Creation, Brand Identity, and Product Licensing — and operates from a single studio at Studio D York Central, 70-78 York Way, London N1 9AG with a headcount of 1-10. Big Active serves enterprise clients across music (Goldfrapp, Lana Del Rey, Elton John, Michael Jackson, Beck), fashion and luxury (Hermès, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Dries Van Noten, Stella McCartney), beauty (Drunk Elephant, Hourglass, Diptyque), food & beverage (Chobani), and media (Netflix, Adult Swim, Warner Music Group), with a roster of over 40 represented image makers including Robert Beatty, Katie Scott, Winston Hacking, and Parra.
The company runs no proprietary technology platform; its core offering is bespoke creative services delivered by senior creative leads Gerard Saint and Mat Maitland (creative practice) and Greg Burne, Matthew Pettit, and Jen Bailey (artist management and content production). Notable technical creative work includes AI-generated imagery and AI-manipulated video used in select campaigns (Sub Focus's Evolve, Alison Goldfrapp), D&AD Yellow Pencil-winning packaging innovation for Beck's The Information, and experiential IP such as Face-o-Mat (exhibited at Centre Pompidou and Guggenheim). Recognition includes a 2014 D&AD Yellow Pencil, 2013 Best Art Vinyl Award, and Swiss Design Awards and Kolla! Golden Prize nominations/wins.
Revenue is generated through two streams: project-based creative consultancy fees (art direction, design, content production) and artist representation commissions on licensing deals connecting represented artists with consumer brands. Pricing is custom-quoted per project with no publicly disclosed rates. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales via direct client relationships, referrals, and industry reputation — there is no retail, digital storefront, or self-serve channel. The firm is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors, parent company, or external funding.
Big Active firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Big Active
- Legal name
- Big Active
- Website
- https://bigactive.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1988
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Big Active is a London-based creative consultancy (founded 1988) providing art direction, graphic design, content production, brand identity, and artist representation services to enterprise clients in music, fashion, luxury, beauty, and media, backed by a roster of 40+ represented image makers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Big Active industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Creative Design Services
- NAICS
- Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (711410), Graphic Design Services (541430), Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (71141)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Full-Service Artist Management (MPAIAGAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Merchandising & D2C Management (Artists) (MPAIAGAI), Activation/Experiential Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAO), Digital Strategy & Social Media Management (Artists) (MPAIAGAH)
Keywords
Where Big Active is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Big Active business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Creative Consultancy Services: Project-based creative services including art direction, graphic design, and brand identity work for clients in music, fashion, and lifestyle industries.
- Artist Representation: Representation and management of artists, earning commissions from creative projects and licensing deals.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Big Active product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Big Active is a D&AD award-winning London-based creative consultancy offering art direction, graphic design, content production, and artist representation services. It delivers visual identity, album artwork, branded content, and product licensing artwork for enterprise clients across music, fashion/luxury, beauty, and media/entertainment industries, combining a roster of represented image makers with full-service creative direction.
Product overview
Big Active is a D&AD award-winning creative consultancy offering art direction, graphic design, content production, and artist representation services. The company operates as a single unified consultancy rather than a platform architecture, organized into five interconnected service pillars: Music Art Direction & Design for album campaigns and music artist visual identity; Artist Representation managing a roster of image makers and creative talent; Content Creation producing films, fashion content, and branded assets; Brand Identity developing visual systems for lifestyle and corporate clients; and Product Licensing facilitating collaborations between artists and brands. A notable sub-brand is Face-o-Mat, an experiential portrait machine project, and The Drum Thing, a curated photography book. The services work together to deliver comprehensive creative campaigns from concept through execution, often combining multiple disciplines in single projects for clients spanning music, fashion, luxury, and entertainment sectors.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- D&AD Yellow Pencil award for Beck's The Information album packaging design
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Big Active
Customer profileNamed customers58 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Big Active technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability3 records
Big Active partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Supercolour RecordsminorBig Active designed the graphic identity for La Roux's new record label Supercolour Records, extending their creative direction relationship with the artist.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Big Active competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- 72andSunny: Global creative agency with strong entertainment and cultural-brand credentials. Comparable in pursuit of music-industry and lifestyle brand work, but operates at substantially larger headcount and scope.
- Wieden+Kennedy: Large independent creative agency network serving global brands across advertising, content, and brand identity. Competes for the same enterprise creative budgets as Big Active, though at materially greater scale and with broader service breadth.
- Creative Artists Agency (CAA): Premier global talent and sports agency with growing brand consulting and content divisions (CAA Creative). Provides the broad incumbent benchmark for artist representation and brand-talent deal-making against Big Active's specialty role.
- WME (William Morris Endeavor): Major global talent agency representing artists, musicians, and creative talent across representation, brand partnerships, and content production. Overlaps with Big Active on the artist representation and licensing deal-making functions.
Direct peers
- Pentagram: Multi-partner design consultancy providing art direction, identity, and graphic design services to enterprise clients. Operates a structurally identical boutique model to Big Active — senior-led, project-based, A-list client roster.
- Anomaly: Independent creative company operating across advertising, brand identity, content, and product licensing. Highly comparable business model with explicit licensing and partnership model that mirrors Big Active's artist-to-brand approach.
- The Mill: Global creative content studio delivering visual effects, design, and branded content for music artists, fashion houses, and entertainment brands. Directly comparable on the content-creation and music-visual-identity service line.
- Mother London: Independent London creative agency delivering advertising, brand identity, and content creation for premium clients. Comparable boutique scale and direct-to-client GTM, with overlapping music and lifestyle client portfolio.
- B-Reel: Creative agency and production studio offering art direction, design, digital content, and brand experience work. Comparable service mix and cross-industry client base spanning music, fashion, and entertainment.
Regional players
- Bureau Borsche: Munich-based graphic design and art direction studio with a comparable specialty-led boutique model and cultural-sector client portfolio. Relevant as a European peer with overlapping design-led positioning, though Germany-centric.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Big Active social profiles
Digital presenceBig Active financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Big Active leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Big Active funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Big Active 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 Big Active
What does Big Active do?
Big Active is a D&AD award-winning London-based creative consultancy offering art direction, graphic design, content production, and artist representation services. It delivers visual identity, album artwork, branded content, and product licensing artwork for enterprise clients across music, fashion/luxury, beauty, and media/entertainment industries, combining a roster of represented image makers with full-service creative direction.
Is Big Active a public or private company?
Big Active is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Big Active founded?
Big Active was founded in 1988. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Big Active based?
Big Active is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Big Active make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Creative Consultancy Services are the primary driver. The others are artist Representation.
Who are Big Active's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are 72andSunny, Wieden+Kennedy, Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and WME (William Morris Endeavor). Direct peers are Pentagram, Anomaly, The Mill, Mother London and B-Reel. Bureau Borsche is listed as a regional player.
Does Big Active have an API?
No public API is recorded for Big Active.
What industry is Big Active in?
Big Active's product category is Creative Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIAGAA, Full-Service Artist Management, with a secondary code of MPAIAGAI, Merchandising & D2C Management (Artists). Its NAICS code is 711410 and its SIC code is 7311.