A group of independent creative and associated agencies has come together to launch Comm:unity, a curated collective designed to create a neighbourhood and “shared table” where agencies can collaborate, share insights and use their combined expertise.

Comm:unity launches with agencies from across the country who share the common philosophies of craft, reputation and genuine care for their people. They include Those That Do and Banter, Beyond The Narrative, BRX, Chello, Electric Lime, Faction, Fourteen10, HSLR, Hustle, JNR, MadeHR, MK Media, POEM, Third Avenue Group, Traction Studio and Unheld. 

It will offer bi-monthly, in-person reports, exploring themes such as pitching, retention and profitability, along with a real time digital community that allows agencies to collaborate and seek council when needed. 

The initial members will be responsible for developing Comm:unity’s rhythm and culture, with a focus on establishing the collective as a peer-led sanctuary for indies to openly share, and a collaborative engine to connect complementary skills and allow agencies to scale without sacrifice. Each agency will then nominate another agency to join as members.

Comm:unity will provide a ‘shadow board’ for indies to sanity-check big decisions, provide live market intel to pitches and opportunities, a resource bank for shared staff, and the capacity to go after larger, multi-disciplinary briefs by partnering with other agencies in the group. 

Those That Do Founder, Ben Walker, stated, “Establishing and running an independent creative agency isn’t for the fainthearted. It can be an incredibly isolating experience, where you’re singlehandedly celebrating the wins, but also navigating the challenges – imposter syndrome, hard knocks and learnings. The idea for Comm:unity was born from the pressures of running an indie and the common conversations shared among owners. Over the past few years, the collective theme among indie owners is that independence is getting harder. We’re contending with tighter budgets, the pitch tax, ever-increasing unbilled hours, the pressure to do ‘more for less’ and a growing sense of isolation, particularly when you’re expected to manage everything from HR to R&D.

“We know indies have something special. While the holdcos win on scale and integrated offerings, indies win on soul, agility and a commitment to craft excellence. The thing indies have been missing isn’t size, it’s a network of peers who get it. This is a community for independent agencies that believe the best work doesn’t happen in isolation, but when smart, generous people share what they’re learning, challenge each other and spot opportunities together.“

A global study from Forrester predicts that 20% of the estimated 50,000 independent agencies will be squeezed out of the market in 2027, due to demand for productivity gains and AI transformation  

“The report also notes, however, that those indie agencies with ‘differentiated thinking, specialised expertise, strong talent, and fast execution’ will remain attractive to marketers. We know there’s challenges for the indie sector ahead, but we also know there’s opportunity. And that opportunity is going to be better harnessed collectively, with owners working together as one united force,” Walker noted.

“It’s our job as a collective to defend the indie sector and it’s more important than ever to take action to make Australian indies buck the global trend.”

Comm:unity hosted its first bi-monthly meet-up last week, with additional members set to be invited by members in the coming months. 

“It was great to spend time with other founders of independent businesses and discuss the issues facing businesses today and into the future. Inspiring, collaborative and thoughtful conversation. Thank you to Ben for initiating and I look forward to the next community session,” commented Beyond The Narrative founder, Anna-Rose (Posie) Stancombe.

Indie agencies who would like to be involved in Comm:unity can learn more and register their interest at https://www.indies.community/.