Many great San Francisco ad agencies are actually spinoffs founded by former employees who worked in the hallowed halls of Goodby Silverstein and learned to hone their craft.
One time I asked a client how they found Division of Labor and he said, “I Googled ‘ad agencies founded by Goodby Silverstein and Partners employees’ ”.
I thought that was pretty smart. When you can’t hire the best, hire the people who learned from the best. Given the longevity of Goodby Silverstein and Partners’ and the talent that’s gone through the place over the years, a good number of us have started agencies. Some got big, some got mid, some stayed small, but all have pieces of what Jeff and Rich started 40 years ago.
Those guys pushed us for fresh, weird, honest, funny, smart, and quirky and they wanted the place to be a reflection of the clients and the people who worked there, not of them. So if you’re like our former client, Preston and you want an agency founded by people who worked up on 720 California St or 921 Front St before that, here they are. Our competitors but also our friends.
I will say, Division of Labor has pitched and won against most of these agencies. And we’ve pitched and lost against most of them. But if a client hires one of them over us, at least I know the client made both a crappy decision and a great decision at the same time. So here they are in alphabetical order, not by ranking, as they’re all great shops.
Argonaut - Hunter Hindman started it with Robert Ricardi, one of the best ad guys out there, and the place is a staple in the San Francisco scene.
BarrettSF - Founded by Jamie Barrett, ex Fallon, ex Weidan and Kennedy and ex Goodby Silverstein, the trifecta of agencies.
Butler Shine - The original spinoff. ButtShine has been doing it well for longer than all of us.
Camp King - Set in the Presidio, founded by Roger Camp and Jamie King. Roger did great work before he was at GS&P and they still do it today.
Cutwater - Founded by Chuck McBride, a great writer who also got to work under Lee Clow, so he has that going for him too.
Division of Labor - Founded by Josh Denberg and Paul Hirsch (and now run by Josh) they focus on Series B startups, tech companies and brand relaunches.
Funworks - Founded by Craig Mangan and based on the idea that improv can lead to great advertising.
Odysseus Arms - I don’t know Libby, but I know Libby’s work and it’s good.
Partners in Crime - Founded by Steven Goldblatt who liked our storefront idea but wanted it near the Giants ballpark.
Venables Bell - Paul and Greg started their place with Bob Molineaux and had Audi within 4 years. Still have no idea how they did that!
So if you’re looking for a shortlist of San Francisco ad agencies, skip the pitch and contact of a few of these places. Though our completely biased opinion says, start by clicking here.
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The Small Agency Blog is produced by Division of Labor; the ad agency for startups, based in San Francisco, twice named Small Agency of the Year by Ad Age. The award-winning creative shop services a variety of clients and specializes in startups that have obtained Series B financing or higher. They also offer freelance services. Click here for a free consultation.