Firsts for anything can be bumpy, especially for a new company. That’s us, kids. A new home for indies and a new honor focused entirely on independent agencies. Throw in the fact that we don’t have categories (hat tip to Little Black Book for doing the same), and you can’t be sure exactly what you’re going to get.
The good news is that our first Indie Agency News Top 40 went far above our expectations.
First, the scoring was VERY tight. From one to 40 and beyond, it was like watching the Kentucky Derby. One day, a piece of work was near the bottom, and then it went DOWN THE STRETCH to make the Top 40 list.
Second, we LOVED seeing such a variety. One moment, it was a full-on TV campaign. The next, we were judging an experience. It stretched the brain and forced the jury to go back to look at their lists several times.
Ultimately, it was an incredibly fun look at why indies stand out. The work was fantastic, and all of our Top 40 and Merit winners prove that our world makes a difference for brands. Congrats to all of you, and thank you for being such great creative ambassadors.
Below are the finalists on the Top 40 list. We’ll start revealing the winners on livestream the week of October 14th and we’ll be in New York on Monday, October 21st, to award the top three winners in person (venue TBD).
Thank you to Leslie Sims and PJ Pereira for leading the charge as co-presidents. And a HUGE thanks to our jury for putting in the time to make this first Top 40 so special.
Top 40 Finalists
- Barrett Hofherr
- Cornett
- Curiosity
- DCX Growth Accelerator
- FUSE Create
- Hook
- Klick Health
- Lafayette American / Scorpion Rose Studio
- Loop
- Lupine Creative
- Mediator Group (Hungary)
- Öpinionated
- Øuterkind
- Partners + Napier
- Party Land
- Pereira O’Dell
- Preacher
- Quality Meats
- Slim Creative
- SMALL
- Someoddpilot
- SPCSHP
- Special U.S.
- SpecialGuest
- Standard Practice
- Storythings
- Terri & Sandy
- The BAM Connection
- WorkInProgress
- Zambezi
Doug Zanger is the founder and editor-in-chief of Indie Agency News. He is also the founder of the Creative Bohemian consultancy, lives in the Pacific Northwest and is insufferable about it.
