Dominic Tremblay spent 10 years at L’Oréal managing brands like Kiehl’s and L’Oréal Professional Paris before deciding to try something different. His partner, Ludwig Ciupka, was a fashion photographer. Neither had worked at an agency. Neither knew how agencies were supposed to operate. So when they founded TUX Creative House in 2009—right in the middle of a recession—they built it the way they thought made sense.
“We kind of stumbled upon building a creative agency for just the pure desire to try to do things a little different,” Dominic explains. “We weren’t attached to a lot of the old ways of doing.”
That lack of attachment became a philosophy. While established agencies chased million-dollar TV spots, TUX embraced the emerging YouTube era with $50k and $100k web videos. They built their own studio in-house. Today, with offices in Los Angeles and Montreal, clients like Converse, Lancôme and W Hotels, and a four-day work week that actually works, TUX has grown into one of the most visually stunning creative houses in North America—still run by the two people who never learned how it was supposed to be done.
How a recession and YouTube videos became a creative house
TUX was born at an interesting moment. The 2009 recession coincided with YouTube’s rise, and while major agencies focused on expensive television production, Dominic and Ludwig saw opportunity in smaller-budget digital work. “Nobody wanted to look at a small video for 50k or 100k, so we were like, yeah, sure, we can do that,” Dominic recalls.
They didn’t outsource production. They built their own studio and kept creation in-house—a model that let them maintain control over craft while mixing creativity with content directly. Dominic’s decade at L’Oréal had instilled expectations around quality and design that shaped everything from the start. Fashion, beauty and retail became early specialties.
Brand equity in a world of sameness
TUX operates with a rare combination: strong branding expertise and social campaign muscle. About a quarter of their business is pure branding—identity, packaging, brand systems. The rest focuses on acceleration campaigns that build brand equity while driving performance.
“We tend to focus on building acceleration campaigns but infusing a lot of the brand in it, so we build the brand on the way up,” Dominic explains. In a landscape flooded with UGC and influencer content, he sees agencies losing sight of brand equity entirely. “There’s some brands that have zero brand equity. They just have traction because of UGC—but eventually there’s no brand equity, so there’s a lot of opportunity there.”
Three things that make TUX different
Premium design heritage. A background in high-end beauty and fashion means TUX approaches everything with elevated craft expectations. This isn’t about making things look nice—it’s about building systems that hold together across touchpoints.
Campaign-meets-brand thinking. Unlike shops that specialize in either brand building or performance, TUX combines both. Their W Hotels work is a prime example: a campaign that drove awareness while reconstructing brand equity after years of quiet.
Cultural connection. Being outside the traditional agency mold gives TUX a perspective that pure-play agencies often lack. They understand both the global brand view and the local market reality—and know how to bridge the two.
Speed matters more than ever
For Dominic, independence comes down to velocity. “This business is a bunch of quick decisions and important moves, and I find that if you have to wait three weeks to present to your board and your CEO to get an answer on something, you missed it.”
With AI tools evolving every few weeks, he believes the agencies that can make fast decisions—not just execute quickly—will pull ahead. “The secret sauce is not so much on the execution anymore. It’s about the thinking. It’s about the process.” At TUX, most clients have Dominic’s cell phone. Decisions happen in real time.
The right size for the right kind of partnership
TUX occupies a sweet spot for brands with limited internal resources. “We’re not 1000 people that’s so big and cumbersome, but we’re not so small that we can’t bring it all the way down to the end,” Dominic notes.
The model works particularly well for companies building internal capabilities. “When do you need an agency? You need an agency that’s flexible. I don’t need to do everything, but I’m pretty good at working with an internal team.” TUX becomes an external creative partner for key moments—fresh perspective and new energy—while internal teams handle ongoing operations.
Why four-day weeks and B Corp certification attract serious talent
TUX has been B Corp certified since 2017 and introduced a four-day work week four years ago. The work tends toward the “sexy and fun” end of the spectrum—even in ordinary categories, they bring an edge that keeps creative people engaged.
Dominic’s philosophy on creativity sounds almost horticultural. “To me, creativity is like gardening. You need to put the great soil, nice sun, you need to nurture it, and then it’s going to grow. But you can’t pull the flowers out.” The four-day work week creates space for brains to recover. In an industry that hemorrhages talent, TUX has built an environment where people want to stay.
Weirdos who built something beautiful
When asked whether TUX identifies as weirdos, misfits or underdogs, Dominic lands on all three—but weirdos fit best. “We kind of were these non-agency people starting an agency and doing their thing. So I always feel like the outcasts a little bit in the agency world.”
That outsider perspective shows in the work. The visual quality speaks for itself. And the origin story—two people who didn’t know the rules building something that challenges them—continues to define what TUX creates.
Dear OURA: TUX would like a word
Dominic has his eye on the wellness tech space. “I would love to connect or work with OURA. Some of the wellness tech environment just stimulates me very much right now.”
The B Corp lens isn’t just a certification for TUX—it’s become an operating system. “It’s not about having the logo,” Dominic says. “It’s just part of how you run your business. An inspirational way of looking at it.”
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TUX LinkedIn
Contact: in**@*ux.co
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