For challenger brands
impossible to ignore.
Safe doesn't stand out
Branding and campaigns for challenger brands done with playing safe.
The challenger brand agency for brands with something to prove
Wildish & Co. is an independent creative agency in Clerkenwell, London. For fourteen years we've built brand strategy, visual identities and creative campaigns for challenger brands, and for established names that want to think like one.
PensionBee came to us to change how a whole industry talks about retirement. Divine Chocolate came for a rebrand and its first ever TV ad. Different categories, same problem: a bigger, louder competitor and zero interest in blending in.
Safe doesn't stand out. For a challenger, safe is the most expensive option on the table.
What is a challenger brand?
A challenger brand is a business that isn't the market leader and competes by thinking differently instead of spending more. It picks a fight with something in its category, usually a tired convention or a complacent incumbent, and builds the whole brand around that position.
Size has very little to do with it. A two-year-old scale-up can be a challenger. So can a hundred-year-old business that has looked in the mirror and decided it's gone a bit safe.
Who this is for?
Scaling challengers. ↓
You've raised capital, you've got traction, and you need a brand that looks like it belongs in the next room. The founding story got you here. It won't carry you through the next stage on its own.
Established brands that want their edge back. ↓
You're not the underdog any more, but a newer competitor is making you look slow. You want the challenger energy without the challenger risk.
Branding and creative campaigns for challenger brands
Market leaders can get away with being forgettable, because distribution and media spend do the work for them. When you don't have that cushion, the thinking has to be sharper. We start with the uncomfortable truths about your category, find the one worth building a brand on, and carry it through to launch.
What's included
Challenger positioning and brand strategy. ↓
Finding the convention in your category worth challenging, and what you stand for instead.
Visual identity. ↓
A brand system built to look nothing like the market leader, and to stay recognisable as you grow.
Tone of voice and messaging. ↓
How you sound when you've got a point of view, written so your whole team can use it.
Creative campaigns. ↓
One idea, built to work across TV, VOD, out-of-home, social and digital.
Production. ↓
Film, photography and motion, produced in-house.
Measurement. ↓
Metrics agreed before launch and tied to what the campaign was meant to do.
Challenger energy, without the challenger risk
Brave work feels a lot less risky when you've seen every step of how we got there. We work as part of your team, so there are no awkward "ta-da" moments.
1. Discovery
We spend time with your team, your customers and your category. You do a lot of talking, we do a lot of listening.
2. Strategy
We define what you're challenging and what you stand for instead. When the strategy is right, the creative becomes obvious.
3. Design and concepts
For campaigns we develop three platforms and take one forward. We'll ask you to sleep on it, and to be brave.
4. Launch and impact
We produce and roll out the work, then measure it against the numbers agreed at the start.
Challenger brand work that drives real growth
Start a project
Latest thoughts
FAQs about challenger brand branding and campaigns
What is a challenger brand? ↓
A challenger brand is a business that isn't the market leader in its category and competes by thinking differently instead of spending more. It's a mindset more than a size. Start-ups, scale-ups and long-established businesses can all be challengers if they're willing to question how their category normally behaves.
What does a challenger brand agency do? ↓
A challenger brand agency builds the strategy, identity and campaigns that help a smaller or newer brand take attention from bigger competitors. At Wildish & Co. that covers brand strategy and positioning, visual identity, tone of voice, and multi-channel creative campaigns produced in-house.
Do you have to be a start-up to be a challenger brand? ↓
No. Plenty of challenger brands are established businesses that have chosen to behave differently from the market leader. We work with scaling brands that need a brand built for growth, and with established brands that want to challenge expectations and regain relevance.
Which challenger brands has Wildish & Co. worked with? ↓
Wildish & Co. has worked with PensionBee, Ford Money, Divine Chocolate, Cult Mia and Zenobe, among others. Ford Money's campaign reached 1.4 million people and lifted site visitors by 826%. Cult Mia's net revenue grew 191% year-on-year after its rebrand.
Can you run a challenger campaign without rebranding us first? ↓
Yes. A campaign takes who you already are and gets it in front of the right people, so you don't need to touch your branding to run one. If the positioning underneath isn't sharp enough to carry a campaign, we'll tell you before the work starts.
How much does challenger brand branding cost? ↓
Branding and campaign projects at Wildish & Co. start from £40,000. The final figure depends on scope: a positioning and identity project costs less than a full rebrand with a TV and out-of-home campaign behind it. Tell us what you're trying to do and we'll scope it properly.
Where is Wildish & Co. based? ↓
Wildish & Co. is based at Clerkenwell Workshops in London, with a second studio near Newbury. We work with brands across the UK and internationally.