Skidmore Studio has carved out an interesting niche for itself over the last year, taking on a growing amount of work for entertainment brands like
Dave & Busters.
"We're focused on going national and landing these clients," says Tim Smith, president & CEO of
Skidmore Studio.
The creative agency has been doing advertising and branding work for Metro Detroit companies since it opened in 1959. It took on Dave & Busters as a client a little more than a year ago, handling some of its advertising and creative work. Since then it has grown that workload by 30 percent, handling everything from print to digital to broadcast work.
Skidmore Studio has also landed other similar clients, including
CiCi's Pizza in Dallas.
Skidmore Studio is working with companies like this to help them attract more millennials to their venues. Smith sees that sort of work as empowering because so many marketing professionals are still trying to figure out how to effectively reach young people.
"Marketeers are mystified and confused by it," Smith says. "We have demystified it."
Growth in areas like that has allowed Skidmore Studio to add to its staff. It has hired six people over the last year, including a former intern that recently graduated from the College of Creative Studies. The company now employs 32 people at its office in the M@dison Building in downtown Detroit.
"We are bursting at the seams here, but we're still here," Smith says.
Skidmore Studio moved to downtown Detroit from downtown Royal Oak a few years ago, becoming one of the first anchor tenants in the then recently redeveloped M@dison Building. It has since filled out its office space with a handful of hires each year, a pace Smith plans to maintain.
Source: Tim Smith, president & CEO of Skidmore Studio
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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