What JOAN Creative does

JOAN Creative is an independent, full-service creative agency founded in 2016 and headquartered at 44 Wall Street in New York, with additional offices in London and Berlin. The firm provides brand strategy, advertising, social and influencer campaigns, content production, brand identity design, and full-funnel media orchestration to growth-stage and established consumer brands. Its client roster spans retail/e-commerce (eBay), professional sports leagues (WNBA), CPG (Brawny, Stacy's), financial services data (S&P Global), beauty (Luna Daily, European Wax Center), hospitality (Virgin Hotels), nonprofit and public health (AdCouncil), and small business SaaS (ZenBusiness). The agency is led by principals Gerry Graf and Lisa Clunie and operates a sales-led, project-based professional services model targeting mid-to-large enterprise brand accounts through direct new business outreach.

The firm's differentiated process is its proprietary "Growth Wheel" framework — a brand indexing methodology that scores brands on a "Modern Legend" scale, diagnoses strategic gaps, and prescribes creative pathways to fill them. JOAN is organized into multiple business units: the core creative agency, JOAN X Media (full-funnel media planning, buying, and analytics with placement reach across 70 countries), JOAN Studios (production services), and JOAN Design (brand identity and design solutions). Revenue is generated through negotiated, engagement-based professional services fees; no public pricing or revenue figures are disclosed. The firm has built a dense industry recognition profile, including AdAge A-List (2021, 2023, 2024), Adweek Small Agency of the Year (2022 winner), three consecutive years on Adweek's Fastest Growing list (2022–2024), Campaign Independent Agency of the Year (2021), and recognition from Cannes Lions, Effies, Clio, One Show, the Jay Chiat Award, and Webbys. JOAN has no disclosed parent company, no known institutional investors, and operates as a privately held, founder-led independent agency.

Name

JOAN Creative

Legal name

JOAN Creative

Website

https://joancreative.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Short description

JOAN Creative is an independent, full-service creative agency serving growth-stage and established consumer brands with strategy, advertising, content production, influencer marketing, brand identity, and media orchestration across offices in New York, London, and Berlin.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advertising Services

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430), Graphic Design Services (54143)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Creative Boutique Agencies (MPAAAAAB), Creator Management & Talent Representation (BPAFAHAB)

Keywords

• Creative agency services
• Brand strategy
• Advertising campaigns
• Content production
• Influencer marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Creative Services: Full-service independent creative agency providing strategy, creative, brand identity, social campaigns, production, account management, and media services to brand clients across various industries.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

JOAN Creative is an independent creative agency that provides integrated brand strategy, advertising creative, brand identity systems, influencer and creator marketing, social-first campaign work, and production services to brand clients. The agency operates complementary business units including JOAN X Media for full-funnel media orchestration across 70 countries, JOAN Studios for production, and JOAN Design for design services. Its proprietary Growth Wheel framework indexes brands on a 'Modern Legend' scale to guide creative strategy.

Product overview

JOAN Creative is an independent creative company that offers a comprehensive suite of advertising and marketing services organized into distinct business units. The core offerings include Strategy (brand strategy, research and insights, naming, data and social), Creative (brand advertising, social campaigns, content, publishing, design, IP, experiential), Brand (identity systems, digital experiences, packaging), Influencer and Creator Marketing, Social (social-first creative and strategy), Production (film, video, animation, photography), Account Management, and JOAN X Media (full funnel media orchestration with global scale across 70 countries). The company also operates sub-brands including JOAN Studios and JOAN Design. JOAN Creative utilizes a proprietary Growth Wheel framework to help brands achieve 'Modern Legend' status through strategic positioning and creativity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategy World-class strategic services for brand clients, covering brand strategy, research and insights, naming, data and social, reporting, social strategy, and communications planning.
• Creative Award-winning creative services designed for modern marketing ecosystems, including brand advertising, social campaigns, content, publishing, design, intellectual property, and experiential work.
• Brand Comprehensive brand identity systems and design solutions, including brand identity design, brand identity refresh, digital experiences, and packaging solutions.
• Influencer & Creator Marketing Creatively driven influencer and creator programs covering sourcing, contracting, management, creative ideas, and application.
• Social Social-first strategic playbooks and platform-expert creative, including social strategy, social audits, platform-driven creative, cultural drops, collabs, and maker pods.
• Production Production and studio services for JOAN Creative and direct to clients, covering film and video, digital and social content, animation, illustration, photography, and experiences.
• JOAN X Media Full-funnel media orchestration to outcomes, including consulting, planning and buying, social content and performance, and advanced analytics, with global scale placing media in 70 countries.
• JOAN Studios Sister division of JOAN Creative providing creative studio services and production capabilities.
• JOAN Design Sister division of JOAN Creative providing brand identity and design solutions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Luna Daily campaign: 1M+ organic social impressions in under 2 weeks, 27% brand lift, UK searches for 'vulva' increased by 35% with zero media spend

Named customers11 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AdCouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJOAN Creative partnered with AdCouncil on the 'Substitute Dealers' fentanyl awareness campaign, creating a pioneering drug safety curriculum. The initiative was co-developed with Snap and YouTube, targeting teen fentanyl awareness through a curriculum taught by former drug dealers as 'substitute dealers' in schools, piloted in Holyoke, Massachusetts and expanded globally.
• SnapcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSnap partnered with JOAN Creative and AdCouncil on the fentanyl awareness curriculum, providing platform distribution and digital reach as part of the 'Substitute Dealers' campaign targeting teen safety education.
• YouTubecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYouTube partnered with JOAN Creative and AdCouncil on the fentanyl awareness curriculum, providing platform distribution and digital/social reach for the global rollout of the 'Substitute Dealers' campaign.
• Mark CubanminorGTM or Marketing PartnerJOAN Creative teamed up with Mark Cuban for the ZenBusiness 'Own What's Yours' brand campaign, with Mark Cuban appearing across social channels to educate and inspire audiences about starting their own businesses.
• CliquaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCliqua, a directing duo embedded in the car community, directed the hero film for the eBay Motors 'Keep your Ride or Die Alive' campaign. They were chosen as authentic collaborators representing real auto enthusiasts, helping make the campaign feel genuine and compelling.
• Iris KimminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIris Kim directed the short film for the WNBA 'Line 'Em Up' campaign, telling the story through WNBA legends, streetball stars, and local hoopers united by the courts they grew up on.
• JOAN StudioscoreOthersSister division of JOAN Creative providing additional creative studio services. Listed as a related business unit under the JOAN parent company, operating at joan-studios.com.
• JOAN DesigncoreOthersSister division of JOAN Creative providing brand identity and design services. Listed as a related business unit under the JOAN parent company, operating at joan-design.com.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Droga5 (Accenture Song): Acquired by Accenture Song but operates with independent creative culture. Highly comparable to JOAN for bold, award-winning creative, integrated strategy-to-media offering, and blue-chip brand clients.
• Mother: Independent creative agency founded in London with NY and LA offices, known for culture-driven creative work similar to JOAN's 'joyful rebellion' positioning. Comparable across service mix, indie philosophy, and global brand client roster.
• GUT: Independent, culture-first creative agency with offices in Miami, NYC, LA, Buenos Aires, Toronto, and São Paulo. Closely comparable to JOAN in independent positioning, integrated full-service model, and culture-driven creative philosophy.
• Anomaly: Independent creative agency offering strategy, advertising, design, and media across NY, LA, London, Toronto, and Shanghai. Closely comparable to JOAN in independent positioning, integrated full-service model, and enterprise client mix.
• David (Agency): Independent creative agency with offices in NYC, London, São Paulo, and Madrid. Comparable to JOAN in independent, founder-driven culture, bold creative work, and integrated service offering.
• Wieden+Kennedy: Largest privately held independent creative agency globally with offices across NY, Portland, London, Shanghai, Tokyo, Delhi, São Paulo. Comparable to JOAN in independent positioning, integrated services, and award-winning culture-first creative output.
• 72andSunny: Independent creative agency with offices in LA, Amsterdam, Sydney, and New York. Directly comparable to JOAN in independent full-service model, culture-first creative philosophy, and enterprise brand clients across consumer verticals.
• Pereira O'Dell: Independent creative agency with offices in San Francisco and New York. Comparable to JOAN in independent positioning, integrated advertising/branding work, and culture-first creative approach for enterprise clients.
• Translation LLC: Independent creative agency founded by Steve Stoute, focused on culture and influencer-driven work. Comparable to JOAN in indie positioning, culture-led creative, and Black/urban cultural insight work for enterprise brands.

Broad incumbents

• The Martin Agency: Larger independent creative agency now part of the Omnicom group (but historically indie). Comparable to JOAN in independent heritage, full-service creative model, and enterprise client mix (e.g., GEICO, Oreo, Walmart).

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/joan-creative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries3 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 JOAN Creative