STONE Strategy & Design

What STONE Strategy & Design does

STONE Strategy & Design is an independent creative studio founded in 2017 and headquartered in Golden, Colorado, specializing in brand strategy and design services for consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands, with a heavy concentration in food and beverage. The firm employs approximately 16 people across strategy, design, innovation, and operations functions, and is led by three partners — Andy Yates (Principal), Emily Wolf (Executive Creative Director), and Amanda Yates (Finance Operations Director). Its service portfolio spans five core areas: Brand Strategy (positioning, purpose, portfolio architecture), Brand Design (packaging, identity, brand books, art direction), Innovation (agile design-to-learn sprints), Story Building (naming, voice, messaging), and Brand Activation (campaigns, toolkits, digital storefronts). Underlying intellectual property consists of two proprietary methodologies — the Step, Stretch, Leap design exploration approach and the Design to Learn agile innovation framework — packaged most visibly through a dedicated sub-initiative called Stone Labs.

The agency's go-to-market is sales-led and project-based, with client acquisition driven by a portfolio-heavy website, case studies, and direct inquiry via a "Let's Talk" contact form. STONE serves both Fortune-500 enterprises (Ocean Spray, Danone, Logitech, Starbucks, General Mills, Annie's, Yasso, Horizon Organic) and emerging challenger brands (GoNanas, Smash Foods, The Peach Truck, Vetnique, Overtone), and has demonstrated repeatable results such as a top 2% all-time Designalytics score for GoNanas and 27%-36% category share for Jack & Annie's following rebrand work. Revenue is generated entirely through professional services fees negotiated per engagement; no public pricing, SaaS products, or technology licensing is offered. The firm is privately held, bootstrapped, and partner-owned, with no disclosed outside capital, parent company, or M&A activity.

Name

STONE Strategy & Design

Legal name

Stone Strategy & Design

Website

https://stonestrategydesign.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

STONE Strategy & Design is an independent, partner-owned creative studio in Golden, Colorado that delivers brand strategy, design, innovation, story building, and brand activation services primarily to consumer packaged goods brands, serving both Fortune-500 enterprises and emerging challenger companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Golden Valley

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

Revenue model

1. Brand Strategy and Design Services: Professional services revenue generated through project-based engagements including brand strategy, brand design, innovation consulting, story building, and brand activation services for CPG and consumer brands.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

STONE Strategy & Design is an independent creative studio that sells brand strategy, brand design, innovation, story building, and brand activation services to consumer packaged goods (CPG) and consumer brand clients. Engagements span positioning, identity, packaging, portfolio architecture, naming, brand voice, and activation campaigns delivered as project-based consulting and design work for both large established brands and emerging challengers.

Product overview

Stone Strategy & Design is an independent creative studio offering brand strategy, brand design, innovation, story building, and brand activation services. Their core services include positioning and purpose, category/culture audits, brand foundations, packaging design and systems, logo and identity systems, brand books, naming, brand voice, messaging, campaign themes, activation toolkits, trade show presence, digital storefront design, and website design. The agency's portfolio spans multiple client projects across sectors including food & beverage (Ocean Spray Redesign, Wild Planet, Smash Foods, Jack & Annie's, Carbe Diem!, Yasso, Laird, Danimals, GoNanas, The Peach Truck, Annie's, Nova, Cafe 13), health (Vetnique), beauty (Overtone), hospitality (Morris & Mae), and electronics (Ultimate Ears, Wonderboom). They also created internal passion projects including Arcana (tequila) and Zoko (chocolate). Their client work ranges from brand creation and redesign to innovation sprints and brand activation campaigns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brand Strategy Strategic consulting service covering positioning, purpose, category/culture/consumer audits, brand foundations, roadmapping, and portfolio architecture to help CPG and consumer brands define their direction.
• Brand Design Visual design service including packaging design and systems, logo and identity systems, brand books, brand world exploration, and photo direction to build brands of desire and distinction.
• Innovation Agile, experimental Design to Learn service that helps emerging brands grow and existing brands stay relevant, including disruptive growth opportunities, platform development, category expansion, and prototype visuals.
• Story Building Service focused on developing brand stories, brand expression, naming, brand voice, and messaging to help brands become bigger than the products they make.
• Brand Activation Service to bring designed brand experiences into the real world, including big ideas, campaign themes, activation toolkits, trade show presence, photo/art direction, illustration, digital storefront design, and website design.

Quantifiable outcome

• GoNanas brand refresh achieved top 2% all-time Designalytics score for purchase intent and aesthetic preference
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• General MillscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmbedded with General Mills innovation team to develop the Carbe Diem! brand from incubation through launch. Applied Design to Learn methodology to create test brands, gather consumer feedback, and bring brand from concept to store shelves in under 18 months.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stone-strategy-design-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 STONE Strategy & Design