An Agency Story

Company: Online Optimism Owners : Flynn Zaiger Year Started: 2012 Employees: 26-50 (Medium) Starting a business is already a little crazy. Growing one with a strong culture and team might be even harder. In this episode, Flynn Zaiger, founder of Online Optimism, shares what he wishes he knew at 22, including how listening, trust, and transparency became his agency’s competitive edge. If you’ve eve...

Company: Pneuma Owners : David Riggs Year Started: 2019 Employees: 26-50 (Medium) Ever wonder how childhood hustle can shape your agency’s success? In this episode, David Riggs, Founder of Pneuma, shares how selling lost golf balls as a kid turned into building a 20+ person digital agency. From scrappy beginnings to structured growth, this story is packed with real, relatable insights on scaling s...

Company: Rubix Agency Owners : Alex Realmuto Year Started: 2019 Employees: 11-25 What happens when your scrappy startup gets kicked out of its unofficial office space? For Alex Realmuto, it sparked a growth journey that led to a thriving agency with major clients and a powerful niche. In this episode, Alex shares the early missteps, hard-won lessons, and the frameworks that helped Rubix scale—with...

Company: HCK2 Partners Owners : Heather Capps Year Started: 1998 Employees: 26-50 What does it take to grow a thriving agency without ever picking a niche? In this episode, Heather Capps, Founder and CEO of HCK2 Partners, shares how she built a 25-year legacy rooted in relationships, operational savvy, and authentic leadership. You’ll hear how her early experiences shaped a unique path to success...

Company: Create the Movement Owners : Brad Post Year Started: 2013 Employees: 11-25  What happens when a corporate climber walks away from it all to follow a calling? In this episode, Brad Post, founder of Create the Movement , shares his incredible journey—from car sales and second mortgages to running a successful digital agency. You'll hear how personal conviction, persistence, and a last-...

Company: Prosperitas Animation Studio Owners : Keely O’Connor Year Started: 2020 Employees: 1-10 (Emerging) When Keely O’Connor hit rock bottom in a soul-crushing restaurant job, she made a bold choice that changed everything, she built her own agency. In this episode, hear how Keely turned personal crisis into creative clarity and launched Prosperitas Animation Studio , blending storytelling, str...

Company: Lovage Inc. Owners : Stephanie M. Casey Year Started: 2016 Employees: 1-10  What do Hollywood film editing, vegan festivals, and Webflow websites have in common? Stephanie M. Casey’s entrepreneurial journey weaves them all together in a story of reinvention, creative freedom, and purpose-driven agency work. In this episode, Stephanie shares how she built Lovage Inc., why she walked away f...

Company: Aletheia Marketing & Media Owners : Chris Schembri Year Started: 2018 Employees: 26-50 What can a $2 billion media budget teach you about scrappy mid-market strategy? Chris Schembri shares how his high-level corporate experience shaped a leaner, smarter approach to running his own agency. From billion-dollar campaigns to pandemic pivots, this episode explores what really drives result...

Company: 30|90 Marketing Owner : Rachel Harris Ledet Year Started: 2018 Employees: 1-10  What happens when corporate marketing meets scrappy entrepreneurship? Rachel Harris Ledet, founder of 30|90 Marketing, shares how she turned a notebook, some car rides, and relentless curiosity into a trusted agency. From near-miss mistakes to building a people-first team, this episode is a masterclass in bala...

Company: Saber Marketing Group Owners : Amber Gaige Year Started: 2013 Employees: 1-10 From opera stages to private equity boardrooms, Amber Gaige’s path to building a marketing agency is anything but typical. In this episode, she shares how unexpected turns, tough love, and a relentless drive helped her grow Saber Marketing Group into a team trusted by clients around the world. You’ll hear how sh...

Company: Anchor Marketing Owners : Marta Luvian Year Started: 2017 Employees: 1-10 Think you need a perfect brand or fancy website to start an agency? Think again. In this episode, Marta Luvian shares how she launched Anchor Marketing with nothing but hustle, a printout, and the drive to help businesses win online. Her story is proof that heart, honesty, and hard work still matter. Inside this epi...

Company: Madison/Miles Media Owners : Mario Medina Year Started: 2010 Employees: 11-25  What does a touring musician know about content strategy? Turns out, a lot. In this episode, Mario Medina, co-founder of Madison/Miles Media, shares how lessons from his rockstar days helped him build a thriving agency, navigate a 13-year partnership, and sharpen focus in a noisy market. You’ll hear how he scal...

Company: Witmer Group Owners : Kristina Witmer Year Started: 2010 Employees: 11-25  What happens when your agency’s growth is quietly being held back by the very clients you're trying to serve? In this episode, Kristina Witmer, founder of Witmer Group, shares how redefining client relationships and rebuilding after a failed partnership led to lasting agency success. Key Takeaways Why client f...

Company: Morether Creative Agency Owners : Daniel Palmer Year Started: 2017 Employees: 1-10  What happens when a pivot isn’t just strategic, it’s personal? In this episode, Daniel Palmer, founder of Morether Creative Agency, shares how leaving a 14-year career to start from scratch led to a thriving fractional CMO business. You'll hear how StoryBrand became his guiding framework and how embra...

Company: BizCom Associates Owners : Monica Feid Year Started: 1999 Employees: 26-50 What happens when a confident young PR pro walks away from an established agency and bets on herself? In this episode, Monica Feid shares how saying yes to a risky merger led to launching BizCom Associates and how that bold decision set the stage for decades of growth. If you're navigating change, growing a te...

Company: The Nix Company Owners : Jordan Nix Year Started: 2018 Employees: 11-25 What happens when you're forced to grow up fast... and win ? Jordan Nix became a teen mom, entered the workforce before most people leave college, and went on to build a national marketing agency. In this episode, she shares how grit, risk, and a relentless drive shaped her business journey. Key Takeaways How ear...

Company: Brandinc PR Owners : Brandi Sims Year Started: 2020 Employees: 1-10  What if your career-defining moment came from a reality TV show? In this episode, Brandi Sims, CEO of Brandinc PR, shares how a spark from MTV led her to build a thriving PR agency during a global pandemic. From imposter syndrome to national press hits, Brandi reveals the lessons, grit, and mindset shifts behind her jour...

Company: Strategy Maven Agency Owners : Amy Hage and Brittney Trahan Year Started: 2020 Employees: 11-25 (Intermediate) What happens when you launch an agency during a pandemic… and go unpaid for the first year? In this episode, Amy Hage and Brittney Trahan of Strategy Maven Agency share how bootstrapping their way through uncertainty helped them build a quality, client-focused eCommerce marketing...

Company: Merge Forward Owners : Kasia Johnson Year Started: 2014 Employees: 1-10  What do hotdogs, helicopters, and Ferraris have to do with building a successful agency? In this episode, Kasia Johnson, founder of Merge Forward, shares how one surreal moment at a company event changed the course of her career and launched a social media-focused agency. From corporate cubicles to training 2,500 AT&...

Company: HQ Owners : Matt Sutherland Year Started: 2012 Employees: 11-25  What happens when a failed wedding startup leads to a thriving agency? In this episode, Matt Sutherland, co-founder of HQ, shares how an unexpected detour turned into a decade-long agency journey. You'll hear how Matt built a profitable dev shop by staying lean, saying no, and focusing on what truly mattered. Inside thi...

Company: Cogwheel Marketing Owners : Stephanie Smith Year Started: 2019 Employees: 11-25  What happens when your entire client base disappears almost overnight? Stephanie Smith, founder of Cogwheel Marketing, faced that exact scenario at the start of the pandemic. In this episode, she shares how she rebuilt her agency from the ground up refining her model, expanding her team, and reclaiming her ni...

Company: Jordan Marketing Consultants Owners: Wendell Jordan Year Started: 2018 Employees: 1-10 What happens when your first client gets three years of work for a one-time $250 payment? In this episode, Wendell Jordan shares his journey from door-to-door sales to building a growing SEO agency and the pivotal moments that shaped his approach to focus, pricing, and long-term sustainability. Inside t...

Company: Moon & Owl Marketing Owners: Jordan Fowler Year Started: 2014 Employees: 1-10  Can empathy build a better agency? Jordan Fowler, founder of Moon and Owl Marketing, shares how his transition from ministry to marketing shaped a unique philosophy that keeps clients around for years...without contracts. This episode reveals how radical empathy and transparency became the core of a thrivin...

Company: Hancock Group Owners: Savannah Alvarado Year Started: 2020 Employees: 1-10  What would you do if the only path forward was to bet on yourself? In this episode, Savannah Alvarado shares how she went from working at a small West Texas agency to buying it outright during the pandemic without a business degree, plan B, or safety net. Learn how she navigated the high-stakes process and built a...

Company: Purpose Marketing Owners: Anna Woodlock and Erika Palmer Year Started: 2018 Employees: 11-25 Some agencies start with a business plan. Anna Woodlock and Erika Palmer started with a single word— purpose . In this episode, they share how that word shaped their agency’s values, client relationships, and team culture proving that mission-driven businesses can thrive without compromise. Inside...