meet send+receive

//  08.22.16

send+receive - left to right: JP Gravina, Simon Craig and Andrew Carty

New Toronto agency invests in creativity. Literally.

send+receive puts 10% of its revenue toward creative projects.

When it comes to being champions of creativity, lots of agencies talk a good game. But freshly minted Toronto shop send+receive, comprised of creative partners JP Gravina, Simon Craig and partner/strategist Andrew Carty, puts talk into action.

The idea for the shop was to offer a modern model designed to meet the needs of today’s client, in an industry that they realized was increasingly about project work.

“It was clear to us that we had to change our output, and to do so we really had to change the way we operate–the way we work, the way we bill, our whole structure, really,” says Carty. “Part of the solution became a full-service, project-based agency with working partners and billing based on output, instead of retainer hours.”

The new structure lead to even bigger thinking about how to support the creative community in an ongoing, mutually beneficial way. They decided to put 10% of the agency’s earnings toward supporting various creative projects; from Kickstarter initiatives, to tech start ups, to short films.

“It keeps us in arms reach of a huge network of talent, brilliant people with brilliant ideas.” Craig, states. “It’s as good for our clients as it is for us, as it is for who we’re supporting.”

For their first creative investment, send+receive have partnered with a Toronto-based film director as executive producers on a short film, scheduled to hit the film festival circuits this fall.

The three partners have more than 35 years combined experience in the industry, having worked on brands from virtually every category, including RBC, Audi, Pepsico, Kraft, Unilever and not-for-profits including Heart & Stroke Foundation, Government of Ontario and Moms Demand Action. In their careers they’ve been awarded internationally by One Show, D&AD, Cassies and Cannes Lions, and most recently helped bring home Canada’s first Grand Effie. But despite awards, the ultimate goal is getting press for their clients, which they’ve achieved on a national and international level. “Being talked about in the ad industry is great, being talked about at the dinner table is far better,”adds Gravina.

After soft-launching at the beginning of the summer, the company has been busy re-branding a cruise line, re-positioning a women’s cancer foundation, helping to launch a new retail brand from the ground up and working for a technology accessories company, all in addition to a host of new business pitches both in Canada and US.

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