The Lab is a full-service creative studio, but we operate more like an equal business partner with clients than an agency.

The decision to enter a project is an investment decision, not a sales decision.

For the last 7 years, we have experimented with, luckily stumbled upon, and worked hard to protect a working model that puts our agency on a path of financial independence, creative freedom, and effective results for partners.

1. No pitching. We share risks through vibe checks, concept fee, partial refund, exit clauses.
2. Iterate forward. We experiment on strategy together. Then concept. Then development. Then execution. We don’t move backward unless there’s a really good reason.
3. Respect each other’s time. If it doesn’t work out by the 2nd or 3rd proposal we’ll recommend other studios to take over.
4. The partner’s business is our business. Because it often is. We try to align our interests to the client’s interests. We exchange fees for equity, or invest our money into exciting projects.
5. Execution focus. We judge our effectiveness by real-world results.
6. Layer-less. Our teams prefer work directly with decision makers.
7. Investments. We often invite former and existing partners to invest into our creative projects.
8. Fee structure. Our fee structure is not based on our raw cost (floor) or client budget (ceiling). It’s based on how much value we add to a project (win-win).

For Client or Agency Leadership: Read On.

How we view value creation and collaboration in the creative industry. And how we live up to this ideal, with real examples: Client Agency Partnerships: Playbook (Long read.)

Author

Tuan Le, Creative Director/ Partner, The Lab